


The Wormhole-Noble Red

by Zwill711



Series: The Wormhole [2]
Category: Halo (Video Games) & Related Fandoms, RWBY
Genre: Crossover, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-29
Updated: 2016-09-29
Packaged: 2018-08-18 14:20:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 12
Words: 26,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8164924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zwill711/pseuds/Zwill711
Summary: Ruby, bored with the absence of Yang, decides to activate a Wormhole cube. In the ensuing chaos, she ends up on Reach, with Noble Six's job burdened on here. Things are about to get fun.





	1. Prologue

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter One-Prologue**

 

Six months.

Six months since Yang left with Tucker. Six months since Team RWBY became Team RWB.

Six months, and Ruby still missed her older sister. She had been spending her days mostly laying in bed, fumbling with a wormhole cube. Until one day, she got curious. She messed with the cubes enough, but could they actually take her places? Give her adventure?

The red haired girl sat up in her bed, and examined the cube further. It had a label that said simply “Reach”.

_'I wonder if this thing works.'_ Ruby thought to herself. Without hesitation, she clicked the button on the cube, and tossed it. It immediately began to dismantle itself and form a portal. Weiss and Blake, walking back from a trip to Vale, heard this and instantly charged in. They were temporarily blinded by the portal.

“Ruby! What are you doing with that thing?!” Weiss yelled as she covered her eyes. The redhead just stared in, before grabbing Crescent Rose and walking towards the entrance.

“Seeking adventure.” Ruby responded.

Ruby closed her eyes and dived in as Blake attempted to grab her, but it was already too late.

She had entered The Wormhole.  Yang was gonna kill Blake and Weiss when she returned.

 

_Wormhole Stream_

 

Ruby lost track of how long she was in the stream, but she was getting drowsy by the minute. Her attempts to stay conscious proved futile however, and she drifted off to sleep. She failed to notice the black and red armor forming on her, and the fact that Crescent Rose had been transmogrified into a UNSC MA5D Assault Rifle. 

When the Wormhole stream ended, instead of the usual drop, she simply appeared in a military bunk. She slept peacefully for a few hours, until a booming voice cut through the silence and woke her up.

“Wake up, Lieutenant. Time for you to meet your new team.” The voice said as she pushed herself up groggily. She instinctively reached for her weapon, but instead grabbed a bright red assault rifle with a rose emblem on the stock.

_ 'Wha-what is this? Where's Crescent Rose?'  _ Ruby thought as she looked around. She didn't have her normal battle gear on, either. She was wearing dark black metal armor with red accents. She saw a helmet of the same colors on a table. 

_ 'This is weird...I don't like it.'  _ Ruby thought as she looked around.  _ 'I guess I should listen to that voice.'  _

She strapped the gun to her back, and climbed out of the bed. She knew the armor had to be heavy, but she had no problem with it.  She briefly wondered how it worked, before shrugging and just accepting that it was probably her aura helping with the load.

_ 'What happened to me in the stream?'  _ She thought as she slid on the helmet, and various icons appeared in her vision.  There was a motion detector,  two bars on top and a compass. There was also an icon of her rifle in the top right. She looked around as she walked, and her gaze fell on a pistol on a table. The visor scanned it and revealed it as an M6G Magnum. She looked around to make sure she was alone, and attached it to a magnetic strip built into the legs of her armor.

_ 'I'm just gonna borrow this for a bit. I'll return it.'  _ Ruby thought to herself.

She walked towards the voice she heard earlier, and saw a man with a suit of armor similar to hers, but it was more lacking. It was more like someone just tied metal plates to standard military uniforms. He was wearing a dark green military cap, so Ruby assumed that he was a sergeant or some form of higher-up. He simple ushered her on without asking questions. Ruby thought it best to stay low until she figured out where she was. She knew the cube she picked up said “Reach” and she was clearly in some sort of military.

Ruby stepped outside and shielded her eyes from the sudden burst of light. When she regained her composure, she saw a large green truck parked in front of her. A man was leaning from the drivers seat. He was wearing the same sort of armor as the man she saw earlier.

“Get in, Lieutenant! I'll take you to Noble Team's outpost.” The man said as he gestured to the passenger seat. Ruby put on a confused look under her helmet. First she woke up in strange armor, and now a man was taking her to see this “Noble Team”.

“Noble Team?” She questioned.

“Yeah, your new squad, remember? You got transferred out from you current position. Your new designation is Noble Six.” The driver explained.

Ruby just rolled her eyes and climbed in the car. This world was gonna take some getting used to.

 

** ___________________________________________________________  
Look who's back! A family member inspired me to get back into writing, and I decided against a WoW subscription. I apologize for the brief hiatus, but I needed to sort out my life. My laptop screen basically died, school has been killing me, and I'm basically trying to enjoy being young while I can. Because let me tell you, life's gonna suck when you grow up. **

**Either way, follow and favorite, and tell me what you thought of this chapter.**

**Peace out.**

**-Zwill711**

 

 

 

 

 


	2. Noble Actually-A-Teenager

**Sup. Zwill711 here. Time to respond to reviews!**

**To 33defence**

**The cubes always place you in the timeline technically. It's just that in the one from The Wormhole, it didn't replace their gear or put them in the place of Team RWBY. And so, when Ruby went to Reach, she lost her gear, and she's Noble Six now. Noble Six, meanwhile, is trapped in a “pocket dimension”.**

**That's done, so on with the show!**

 

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Two-Noble Actually-A-Teenager**

Ruby climbed into the car and sat down. The driver pulled a file out of the console and handed it to her. It had a strange emblem on the front, and “Noble Team” was written on the folder.

“Read up on your squad while we drive.” The driver said as he started the engine.

_'Finally, some answers. Let's see who this Noble Team is.'_ Ruby thought as she opened the folder...and found that it was covered in black censors. Ruby grunted slightly and began to read the first entry on “Carter-A259”. The photo showed a gruff looking man, with a flat top hairstyle. He had a variety of scars on his face. Ruby looked down at his rank, and saw that it said “Commander of NOBLE”.

_ 'He's kinda scary.'  _ Ruby thought as she skimmed his biography.  She flipped the page and saw a woman designated “ Catherine-B320”.

_'Huh. A female. Mix it up a little.'_ She thought as she read the page. This woman, strangely enough, had a robotic arm enhancement listed. Ruby couldn't wait to meet her. She skimmed through the rest of the folder quickly and closed it.

_'Well, NOBLE Team is certainly diverse.'_ Ruby thought as they continued on. After a few minutes, she saw some helicopters flying over, and a voice on the radio cut through the silence.

“Transport One, come in. Transport One, do you read?” The voice asked.

“This is Transport One, over.” The driver responded.

“Transport One, what is your status?” The voice asked once more.

“About ten kilometers out. Will be arriving soon.” The driver said as he looked at his GPS.

“Understood. Command out.” The voice said as the radio clicked off.

A few minutes later, and an outpost began to come into view. It was absolutely bustling with life. Helicopters were landing, and soldiers were going about their duties.

Ruby climbed out and looked around, while the car that transported her drove off. She was especially interested in the helicopters she had seen. She walked over and began to examine one and the symbols. All of them had a logo on the back that said UNSC. Ruby was so engrossed in the chopper that she failed to notice that a mechanic had walked up.

“Fine piece of machinery, ain't she?” The mechanic asked as he leaned on the chopper. Ruby slightly jumped at the sound.

“Um...yeah, totally!” Ruby responded, not really knowing anything about this world.

“Makes one-hundred and twenny meters per hour. Hey, wait, aren't you the new member of NOBLE Team?” The mechanic explained.

“Yeah. Why do you ask?” Ruby questioned, having a vague idea of what was happening.

The mechanic looked around before turning to face her.

“Listen here...Do you know about Thom?” The mechanic whispered to her.

“No...why?” Ruby wondered. Who was this “Thom” fellow?

“Thom was the original Noble Six. He died to blow up a Covenant ship.” The mechanic told her.

_'Well, now I know why I'm here.'_ Ruby thought for a minute.

“That's a shame. Uh...I have to go.” Ruby replied, now fearing for her life. The mechanic waved goodbye and she continued on to the main building.

As she walked in, she heard bits and pieces of a radio conversation. She couldn't make most of it out, but she did hear one part.

“Contact with Visigrad relay was lost last night.” Ruby overheard. With every passing second, her body become overrun with fear. She walked in and surveyed the room. She could better hear the radio now, and a man said that a team went MIA. She saw a thick man in blue armor talking to the man. Carter.

“And now you're sending us?” Carter asked the radio.

“The Office of Naval Intelligence believes that a Spartan team is a gross misapplication of resources. I disagreed.” The radio responded. Ruby wanted to walk further in, but to be honest, she was scared. There was Emile, staring at her and sharpening a machete. Jun, loading his rifle in the corner. While she was taking all this in, Kat had moved to block her path.

“Commander.” She said with a thick accent. Carter and Jorge turned to face her.

“So that's our new Number Six?” Jorge asked. Ruby walked in and stood in the center of the room.

“Kat, you read her file?” Emile asked, gesturing to the redhead.

“Only the parts that weren't covered in black ink.” Kat replied.

Carter turned back to the radio, and continued his call.

“Anyone claim responsibility, sir?” Carter questioned.

“ONI thinks it might be the local Insurrection. Five months ago, they pulled a similar job on Harmony. Hit a relay to take out our eyes and ears, then stole two freighters from dry-dock. That cannot happen here. Reach is too damn important. I want that relay back online, Noble One.” The man answered.

“Sir, consider it done.” Carter said to the screen.

“Then I'll see you on the other side. Holland out.” The man replied as the screen cut off.

Carter grabbed his helmet, and everyone stood up and faced Ruby.

“Lieutenant.” Carter said to her.

“Uh, who? Me?” Ruby responded, pointing to herself.

“Yes, you. Follow me, we're moving out.” Carter ordered as everyone else headed out.

“I'm Carter, Noble Team's leader. That's Kat, Noble Two, Emile and Jorge, Four and Five. You're riding with me, Noble Six.” Carter explained as they walked.

“Okay. What are we doing?” Ruby asked.

“Going to check out a relay that went down.” Carter said to her. The team climbed into one of the helicopters outside.

“I'm not gonna lie to you, Lieutenant. You're stepping into some shoes the rest of the squad would rather leave unfilled.” Carter told her as he fastened his harness.

“Oh, you mean Thom?” Ruby replied.

“Wow...you, uh...you actually knew about Thom.” Carter responded in amazement.

Carter regained his composure and spoke again.

“Me, I'm just happy to have Noble back up to full strength. Just one thing. I've seen your file. Even the parts the ONI censors didn't want me to. I'm glad to have your skill set, but we're a team. That lone wolf stuff stays behind. Clear?” Carter ordered.

“Understood.” Ruby said, nodding her head.

_ 'Huh. Seems like things might be looking up.'  _ Ruby thought as he looked out of the chopper.

_Later_

_Reach Highlands_

Ruby sat in silence for an hour or so, before Carter began to speak again.

"Listen up, Noble Team. We're looking at a downed relay outpost, fifty klicks from Visegrad. We're going to introduce ourselves to whoever took it out, then Kat's going to get it back online." Carter explained.

"Just get me under the hood, Commander." Kat replied from the other helicopter.

"Sir, why would rebels want to cut off Reach from the rest of the colonies?" Jorge asked his teammates.

"You get a chance, maybe you can ask them, Jorge." Carter responded sarcastically.

A minute or two later, Kat popped up on the comms again. Ruby was still getting used to comms, and just having voices in her head.

"Commander, we just lost our signal with HQ." Kat explained. Ruby started to sweat, remembering Mountain Glenn. No signal means no help.

"Backup channels?" Carter asked.

"Searching...nada. Can't say what's jamming us." Kat responded after a few seconds.

"You heard her. Dead zone confirmed. Command will not be keeping us company this trip." Carter said to everyone.

"I'm lonely already." Emile replied with an eye roll.

_ 'Barely four hours here and already everything is going down. I'm beginning to regret this.'  _ Ruby thought as she readied her rifle.

 

** ___________________________________________________________________________________ **

** So, another chapter done. Thanks to Halo Wiki for the transcripts. Favorite, follow, and tell me what you think so far. I would have made this chapter longer, but I think I can settle with all of Noble Actual and the beginning of Winter Contingency. I have a feeling this will be a long series. **

**Peace out.**

**-Zwill711**

 

 

 

 

 


	3. The Heck is a “Winter Contingency"?

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Three-The Heck is a “Winter Contingency"?**

 

Carter said something to the pilot, as the Falcons approached the landing zone. Ruby could see a large satellite dish and a variety of windmills, as well as a few miscellaneous buildings.

Ruby was snapped out of her thoughts as a beacon appeared on her HUD. It said to investigate a distress beacon a decent distance away. The helicopters landed on a nearby bluff, and everyone but Jun and Jorge climbed out of the vehicles. Ruby landed softly on her feet, and lowered into a crouch, rifle at the ready.

“Six, any hostiles?” Carter asked as he looked around.

“Um...not that I can see.” Ruby answered as she stood up.

“All clear. Move out!” Carter ordered as NOBLE Team began to run down the hill.  
After walking down the path, Ruby stumbled across a burning farm. She gasped and rushed in to see if anyone was alive. Thankfully, it looked like the inhabitants made it out alive. Emile walked up and crouched in front of some wood palettes. He tossed one aside and lifted up a red box.

“Found the distress beacon.” He announced to his team. He stood up and tossed it to Kat.

“Make out any ID?” Carter asked.

“Negative...but it's military.” Kat responded.

“What's going on here?” Ruby asked as she motioned to the farm.

“Couple o' marines lit up a distress beacon last night. This is their last known position.” Emile explained. Ruby nodded and walked inside. After a quick check for evidence, she rejoined her team and they continued down the hill.

“So…where are all the troopers?” Jorge asked over the radio.

“Why are we not seeing any explosives residue?” Kat wondered aloud.

“NOBLE Three, can you confirm any E-X residue?” Carter asked over the radio.

Ruby dodged out of the way as some strange animals came barreling past her. She assumed they were native to the region and continued on.

“Smoke at the next structure, boss.” Kat announced.

“NOBLE Team, you have permission to engage, but be selective. We don't need to telegraph our presence.” A man said over the radio. Ruby stumbled upon some houses and investigated them.

_'Huh. Must be a residential area.'_ She thought as she walked along. She found a half-ruined house and decided to check it out.

“Hey guys, you might want to see this.” Ruby said over the comms. Jorge landed nearby and stepped out. He walked up to the door and knocked, motioning for Ruby to be quiet. A civilian walked out with his hands up and spoke in an unknown language. Jorge understood it, though.

“They're not rebels, they're farmers. Look at them.” Jorge told his team.

“Well, what are they doing?” Carter asked. Jorge and the man conversed for a minute.

“Hiding, sir.” Jorge replied.

“Neighbors were attacked last night. He heard screams...gunfire. Stopped around sunrise. Says something in the fields killed his son.” Jorge translated.

“Some _thing_?” Carter asked, suspicion in his tone. Jun came on the radio.

“Be advised, I'm reading heat signatures in the structure directly east of your position!” Jun warned.

Ruby nodded and pulled out her Magnum, and walked cautiously to the building.

Ruby arrived at the building, and leaned against a wall near the entrance. Kat took cover parallel to her. Kat nodded at her, and they moved inside. Ruby gasped and almost broke down in shock. Two soldiers, tortured and brutally pinned to the wall. She threw her rifle on the floor, and activated her semblance, disappearing in a flash of red.

“Wait! Six!” Kat called out to her. Her attention suddenly changed to the rose petals on the floor.

“Hey, Jorge? Were these here before?” She asked as she held one up.

“No...and I don't think your Sprint system you built is _that_ fast.” Jorge answered.

“Well, fan out and find her!” Carter barked. Everyone nodded and split up.

About thirty minutes later, Kat found her hiding behind a truck with her helmet off. Ruby's face was deep red, and she looked depressed. Kat holstered her pistol and crouched down next to her.

“Hey...what's wrong?” She asked the teenager.

“It's too horrific...I can't take it.” Ruby said shakily.

Kat sat for a moment before realizing something.

“You know...you look really young to be in the UNSC.” Kat told her.

“Well, I'm not actually from this world.” Ruby replied.

“Oh? Off-world colony?” Kat asked her.

“No, I come from a place called Remnant.” The redhead responded. Kat lifted up her wrist and entered some info on her tacpad.

“Strange. There's no info on it in the UNSC database.” Kat noted.

“Probably a reason for that.” Ruby muttered. Kat looked up at her.

“How did you get here? Your file says you were a lieutenant in the UNSC.” Kat inquired.

“I don't know...I activated a weird wormhole thing, and then next thing I know, I wake up in a bunk somewhere with everyone calling me Lieutenant! I'm not NOBLE Six, and I don't know where Six is!” Ruby ranted. Kat sat down next to her and put her hand on Ruby's shoulder.

“Just because you're not Six, doesn't make you any lesser as a person. We'll find a way to get you home someday, but for now, we could use your help. To be honest, we're losing this war.” Kat said. The words began to calm her, and Ruby sat up and slid her helmet on.

“Let's go win a war.” Ruby replied. The two walked back to the group in silence. Carter immediately began to yell at her.

“Six! Where the hell were you?!” Carter barked. Kat came between him and Ruby.

“She isn't Six! She's more complicated than we thought.” Kat explained.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!” Carter yelled back.

“I can't explain it right now, but she's still useful.” Kat reasoned. Carter grunted and backed off.

“While you were away, we found out more about the situation. These are two of the missing troopers. Looks like they were interrogated.” Carter told the group. Carter motioned to the exit of the building, and the team walked out.

“Careful. Watch your trackers.” Emile said. NOBLE Team entered their combat stance, and they heard rattling. They looked up to see a strange bipedal creature hopping about.

“The hell is that? Jun, you see anything?” Jorge asked.

“Negative…thermals clean.” Jun responded over comms. A minute later, the team entered a large room with two windows. They saw the bipedal creature, and he was holding an alien rifle. A Jackal.

“Boss! I see movement! Outside the structure!” Jun yelled.

“Damn it! Covenant!” Jorge yelled. Ruby ducked into cover between the windows and pulled out her rifle. She swung out and opened fire with dead-on accuracy, silencing most of the enemies before reloading. Emile motioned to move up, and she obeyed, ducking under the wall. She walked down a stairwell and unloaded her rifle into her enemies. She took cover in the doorway, as Jun provided close-air support with his Falcon. After clearing the courtyard, she moved up with her team, Jorge taking point. She noticed a large “U” shaped ship landing, and thought it was an enemy craft.

The ship dropped a new horde of Covenant before leaving, and Ruby continued to dispatch them all.

“Come on! Give me a challenge here!” Ruby yelled as she sprayed ammo all over. Once all the hostiles were dead, she moved up the hill with her team. They stumbled upon another farm, and Ruby switched to her Magnum and killed as many enemies as she could, beating the rest to death.

“She's friggin brutal.” Emile told Jorge as they walked.

“I know, right?” Jorge replied.

Ruby finished ripping the skull off a Grunt, and strapped her rifle to her back before continuing on.

“All right, me, Five and Six will rescue the troops. Emile, Kat, you're going to the main outpost.” Carter explained as a Falcon landed. Emile nodded and walked off with Kat, while Carter's team headed up the hill. They found an orange pickup and Ruby climbed in the driver's seat. Carter hopped in the passenger seat, and Jorge climbed on the back. Ruby gunned the engine, and immediately drove off.

_'Yang kinda showed me how to work Bumblebee once. This should be exactly the same.'_ She thought as she drove erratically towards their destination. Halfway there, Carter ripped out the keys and told her to get out, switching places with the teen. Jorge leaned in from the back.

“Where'd you learn to drive?” He asked.

“That's just it. I never did.” Ruby responded. Jorge was taken aback by the statement, before making a mental note to never let her drive anything. Ever.

They continued on, encountering Covenant forces along the way. They shot straight through a service station, and arrived at the outpost the marines were holed up at. Ruby saw a shotgun on the floor, and exchanged it for her Magnum. The team rushed outside to see that the marines were barely holding their own against the alien threat. Ruby jumped down from the platform she was on, and let her shotgun rip. She eliminated five enemies in her first burst, but she had more to go. She dove behind cover with the marines, and blind fired with her assault rifle.

“Jun, we need evac! How soon can you get here?” Carter asked over the radio.

“Not long. Hang tight.” Jun answered.

With the enemies dead, Ruby loaded her weapons and prepared for combat. A dropship neared the outpost before landing right in front of it. A swarm of elites poured out and started blasting. Ruby did her best to fight them, but one Elite got through and grabbed her by the throat, lashing her about like a ragdoll. Ruby quickly noticed a knife attached to her armor. She pulled it out, and stabbed right through her attackers skull, leading him to drop dead. She pulled the knife out and holstered it, before returning to the fight. A Grunt threw a Plasma grenade at her, leading her to get blown back into the building, making a crater in the wall. She pushed herself out as her shield recharged, and decide to forego guns briefly, and beat everything. She charged into combat, first grabbing a grunt by the skull, and slamming him into the ground. Her attacks were filled with pure rage now. She pulled out her knife, garnering a streak of kills by stabbing the aliens in their throats. When she was done, the marines were standing in pure shock.

“Who-what are you?” One of the marines asked as a falcon began to land.

“I'm the Grimm Reaper.” Ruby responded with a smile.

The Falcon landed, and she climbed in with her team. The marines climbed in another falcon.

“Alright, next objective. Head to the relay outpost.” Carter told the group. Everyone nodded in acknowledgment.

“Kat, any luck getting in?” Carter asked over comms.

“I don't have my torch...gonna take some time.” Kat responded.

“Alright. We're en route to your position.” Carter told her.

A short flight later, and they arrived at the relay outpost. Jun provided cover fire, and they dropped down in the center of the courtyard. NOBLE Team charged forward, blasting everything and everyone in their path. They entered the warehouse, and found Kat trying to hack the main scanner. They got in and held off the Covenant as she closed the door. Kat let out a sigh of relief, and turned to Ruby.

“Hey, you alright?” Kat asked as she stood up.

“Yeah. I have had quite the adventure.” Ruby told her happily.

“I'm sure you have.” Kat said, walking over to another panel.

Kat hacked the door panel, and the large bulky doors slid open. The team walked in cautiously, with Ruby in the lead.

“Can't see a thing. Six, turn on your night vision.” Carter ordered as Ruby clicked the switch on her helmet.

_'I bet night vision would come naturally to Blake. I miss Blake. And Weiss. And Jaune. I miss everyone.'_ Ruby thought as she down the dark corridor.   
Ruby stumbled across a dead body. Another civilian. Carter was talking to a wounded marine.

“Where's the rest of your unit?” Carter questioned.

“We got split. I don't think they-It sounded bad on the comms.” The marine answered.

“Damn! Plasma damage.” Kat said as she looked over a terminal. Ruby picked up a data chip she found on the body.

“Found something!” Ruby said as she held it up. Kat quickly snatched it.

“I'll take that. Not your domain, kid.” Kat told her. Jorge dragged out another civilian from some air vents.

“I've got a live one over here!” Jorge yelled as the civilian punched him, screaming in a foreign language.

“It's all right. We're not gonna hurt you.” Jorge pleaded.

“Jorge...” Carter began to say.

“I got her.” Jorge replied, grabbing her by the arms. “Keep still and I'll release you.”

The woman began to calm down, enough to speak. She began to talk, but suddenly, three Elite Zealots jumped down into the room. They opened fire, killing one. Another escaped, and the third had Ruby pinned to the floor. He swung his sword and barely missed her, and she punched him in retaliation. Kat kicked the Elite off her, and got a few good hits in with her pistol. Ruby grabbed her rifle and instantly began to give chase, Jorge following behind. She opened fire on the various grunts and jackals once inside, with Jorge spraying ammo through the room. They entered another room, with rising and lowering archives. Ruby jumped on top of one, and opened fire with her shotgun. A Zealot jumped up and tried to stab her, but a quick reversal and a blast in the neck fixed that issue. She tossed a couple grenades to clear the room, and was on her way. Once the outpost was cleared, they returned to the main room. Kat was drilling off a panel, trying to access video logs.

“How long?” Carter asked.

“Question of my life...If you're asking how long till the station is back online, two weeks earliest. This is plasma damage. All major uplink components are fried.” Kat explained. “Now, I've almost got a line to Colonel Holland, if you'll be patient.”

“Hey guys.” Ruby said as she walked up.

“Hey, six. Clear out the hole?” Carter asked.

“Yeah, all hostiles eliminated.” Jorge answered. He walked over to the girl from earlier and began to converse in her language. Ruby, meanwhile, had given up trying to understand them.

“Signal! It's patchy, but it's there.” Kat piped up.

“I'll take it.” Carter said as he took off his helmet.

Kat walked off with the rest of the team. Ruby had lagged behind in an attempt to hear their conversation.

“The Covenant are on reach?”

“Affirmative, sir. It's the Winter Contingency.”

Ruby didn't know what that meant, but she felt afraid.

“Hey, kiddo. You coming?” Kat called out.

“Y-yeah. Just a moment.” Ruby said.

 

_'Why is it I chose Reach of all places to go?'_ Ruby thought as she emerged from the base.

 

**Hey guys, Zwill711 here. Another chapter done. This one was looonnngggg. Either way, follow and favorite as usaul. Tell me what you think of Ruby's first outing with NOBLE Team. This story will likely follow a  
“One Level Per Chapter” system as Halo Reach levels can get decently long. **

**Peace out.  
-Zwill711**


	4. Sword Base? Where's the swords?

**AN: Quick Review Responses.**

**To Guest:**

**I'll consider it. No promises.**

**To 33defence:**

**As soon as this is over, the idea is that Ozpin will catch on to the idea of wormhole transit, and send each of Team RWBY through them. You'll just have to wait and see for DXHR and GTA.**

**All done, so on with the show!**

 

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Four-Sword Base? Where's the Swords?**

 

_Beacon_

_ July 26 th. _

The students gathered on the landing pad, as a large wormhole appeared in the sky. The last time that happened was in December of last year. A large bulky ship flew out, and the writing on the side came into view. The rechristened Staff of Charon, now used by the Reds and Blues, was returning Yang. The large craft hovered over Beacon before landing. The main hangar bay door opened, and the students expected a large army. However, Weiss and Blake knew what was coming out of that ship, and they were not excited for it. As the dust from the door cleared, Yang Xiao Long walked out and took off her shades.

“Dang! Didn't think i'd get this warm a welcome!” Yang yelled as she stepped out. She laid her eyes on Weiss and Blake, dashing over and gripping them in one of her signature “Yang Choke-Hugs”.

“Hey, guys! I've missed you so much!” Yang said as she put them down before noticing something. “Um, where's Ruby?” Blake rubbed the back of her head, and Weiss was trying to find a way to outrun her.

“She-uh...she kinda ran off.” Weiss answered sincerely as possible. Yang's hair immediatlly began to ignite and she grabbed the heiress by the throat.

“She kinda ran off?! That's the best you've got for me?! WHERE IS SHE?!” Yang interrogated her.

“She...activated one of those Wormhole things...she's been missing two months.” Weiss rasped out. Yang threw her against the concrete and marched off. The Staff of Charon lifted off and returned through the wormhole shortly after.

_ 'Two months?! Two freaking months?! What the hell was she thinking?!'  _ Yang thought angrily as she blasted the door off her dorm room. She reached into the desk and pulled out the cube Ruby activated. It was fried completely. Yang threw the cube on the floor and broke down crying.

_ 'God...I can't lose another family member.'  _ She thought.  Unbeknownst to her, Team JNPR was outside the room listening in.

“I feel like I should talk to her.” Jaune suggested.

“No. She just needs time and space.” Pyrrha said. Jaune nodded and the team returned to their room.

 

_Reach_

_ July 26 th , 2552 _

_Approaching ONI Sword Base_

 

Ruby was sitting quietly in a Falcon, on approach to their next mission. They were defending Sword Base. Everything was business as usaul. Jun was tweaking his rifle, Carter was likely reviewing the mission in his head. Jorge, well...she didn't know what went on in his head. Emile was sharpening a knife, and Kat was sitting next to her, working out the physics behind wormholes. A minute later, a man came on the comms.

“Be advised, Kilo-three-three and Kilo-three-four, your current LZ is too hot!” The man announced.

“Roger that. DOT, standby to receive and respond.” Carter said.

“Who's DOT?” Ruby asked.

“She's our AI. Helps us figure stuff out.” Kat explained.

“Oh. Okay.” Ruby replied.

“Yes, commander. Coordinates received. Initiate immediate course correction.” The AI said over the comms.

The falcon flew past a large covenant ship, causing Ruby's jaw to drop. She had never seen such a large vessel.

“Covenant corvette. Caused some real problems back in the day.” Kat told her as she pointed to it.

“The [Office of Naval Intelligence](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Office_of_Naval_Intelligence) [Sword Base](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Sword_Base) is presently under siege from a corvette-class Covenant vessel. Due to the sensitive nature of this facility, use of orbital rounds has been, for the moment, prohibited. Regrettably, my efforts to obtain relevant data on enemy forces have been unsuccessful. However, current defensive forces are insufficient. ONI has requested Team Noble's direct intervention to help secure Sword Base." Auntie DOT informed the team.

"Alright people, we're stuck with that ship for the time being. Let's focus on the hostile infantry - give those troopers a hand." Carter responded as he readied his rifle.  The falcon landed on the base, and Kat and Ruby jumped out as they were greeted by a squadron of elites. Ruby rushed past a group of Marines, jumped up and used her semblance to speed punch an Elite with the butt of her rifle. Kicking him once to make sure he was finished, she sped on. She jumped down off a barrier and used her expert marksmanship to eliminate a fair number of hostiles before landing. She couldn't pull off the moves she could with Crescent Rose, as these weapons had less recoil. A Phantom dropped off more enemies, and she jumped onto a nearby wall and pulled out her Magnum, striking down three Jackals before jumping off the wall. She quickly activated her semblance again to get into a checkpoint, as Kat joined her, diving behind cover.

“Where'd you learn to shoot like that?” Kat asked as she fired her pistol.

“Beacon Academy.” Ruby answered happily. She took pride in her education.

“We have an academy like that. Called CAMS. We train ODSTs there.” Kat told her.

“Neat.” Ruby said as she held off the waves of hostiles.

“Hey, see that target locator? Pick it up, you'll need it.” Kat told her, and Ruby obeyed, placing it on the leg parallel to her Magnum. **(AN: Before you tear into me in the reviews about only being able to hold two weapons, Ruby is smarter than that. A two shot fire-and-forget weapon? She's got enough sense to hold on to it and then dispose of it.)**

“What's this thing do?” She asked.

“You'll see.” Kat replied smugly.

The Covenant were becoming too much to handle, so Ruby unholstered the target locator, aimed it, and fired it. A large red circle appeared on the ground, and a few minutes later, all the Covenant got a one way trip upstairs.

“Why are we not using this more often?!” Ruby said as she hopped up and down giddily.

“Because it only has two charges.” Kat told her as she patted her on the head. Ruby looked down and saw that she only had one shot. She had to make it count. She holstered the locator, and the checkpoint doors opened, and the duo ran out. Ruby saw a burning Warthog drift out of the shadows, and a large purple tank emerged with it.

“Wraiths! Take them out!” Kat yelled as she held off the ground forces. Ruby readied the locator, lined up a shot to get both of them, and watched with a scary level of excitement as they blew up.

“You are one scary teenager...” Kat muttered.

“All clear down here. Give us a ride.” Kat said over the comms. A pelican approached and Ruby could see that it had a warthog attached. Ruby looked around and saw a rocket launcher on the ground. She threw aside the Target Locator and exchanged it for her Magnum. The Warthog dropped and Ruby attempted to climb in the driver's seat but Kat blocked her.

“Oh, no you don't. I talked to Jorge. Get in the passenger seat.” Kat said sternly. Ruby grumbled and climbed in.

“Alright, first objective. Bring comms back online. Next, activate an AA battery nearby.” Command said over the radio.

“Understood.” Kat responded, starting the Warthog. They came across Grunts on ghosts, but the gunner on the back took care of that.

They arrived at the AA station. Ruby dived out of the car and opened fire with her rifle, before running into the building. She fought off an Elite Zealot, and ran up the stairs, throwing off a Grunt along the way. She found the button to activate, along with various supplies.  
“Boop.” She said as she pressed the panel. That was something Nora always said, but it felt relevant to her.

The AA gun roared to life, knocking a Covenant dropship out of the sky. Ruby walked out the way she came in, and Kat rolled by to pick her up.

“Good job. On to the Comms relay!” She told her as she climbed back into the truck.

They raced through the twists and turns of the hills, finishing off every Covenant they came across. They arrived at Farragut station, and they both jumped out. Kat went in first, throwing a smoke grenade to hide them. While the enemies were confused, she snuck up behind them and stabbed them. She turned around and powered up the generators. Ruby rushed through the room, and rolled out the door landing in a crouch. She saw Elites on the bridge, but they were no match. Their shields were getting more and more annoying though. She crossed the bridge and fought her way to the main control room. She plugged up the relay, and powered it up using the center console. She dived out the window, and luckily for her, Kat had the car ready to land in.

“Good timing.” Ruby noted.

“I'm a Spartan. Great reflexes and teamwork without communication are required for the job.” Kat told her as she set off back to Sword Base.

“Kat, Six, we've landed at Sword Base. Get here quick.” Jun said over the radio.

“On it!” Kat replied as she pushed the car to it's brink.

They arrived at Sword Base, alive but mentally scarred.

“I think you're a worse driver than me.” Ruby said as she got out and unlocked the checkpoint.

“Oh, shut up. You're alive, aren't you?” Kat told her as she parked the car and got out.

Ruby charged in and saw a golden Elite jumping about. She took a few pot shots and managed to take him out and move up. Her and Kat continued on, mixing a blend of firing and melee attacks. After getting off the ramp and into the main building, Ruby grabbed a shotgun off a rack, as usaul. She saw two large armored creatures and ducked into cover.

“Hunters...keep quiet and sneak behind them.” Kat whispered to her as she made a move on one, grabbing the worms in it's weak points and pulling them out in fistfuls. Eventually, the Hunter keeled over and died. Unfortunatly, it brought attention to her. The hunter fired its cannon, narrowly missing her. Ruby ran behind while Kat shot with her Magnum, and unloaded her shotgun into it's back. She kicked it in the back to finish it off, and it fell over.

“That wasn't too hard.” Ruby said.

“Not when you're not the one getting pelted with fuel rods. Let's keep moving.” Kat replied. Ruby nodded and followed her. They entered an elevator and Ruby activated it. Kat decided to update her on the plan, since she noticed she didn't have the greatest attention span. She activated a holographic map of ONI on her tacmap and showed it to her.  
“See this? This is our objective, the security room. We're gonna get in there and fix things up.” Kat told her. Ruby nodded and readied her rifle as the elevator arrived. They ran out of the elevator, coming across an Elite Minor and a couple Grunts. They quickly dispatched them, and carried on. They walked into a large open courtyard and saw the rest of their team. Jorge was holding his own, but they needed help. Ruby saw a Covenant turret, and activated her semblance to take it. She stabbed the elite using it in the back, and ripped it off it's pedestal. After getting used to the weight, she started to tear through the hostile aliens one by one.

“Six, head upstairs and assist the Marines.” Command said over the comms. “Jorge, make sure she gets there.” The two soldiers traded glances at each other, before nodding and heading up. They arrived in a set of offices, and cleared out the Covenant, finding a group of marines. Their callsigns appeared on Ruby's HUD, and they began to follow the two. A short fight and a bit of walking later, and they were outside. The Corvette was ripping the base to pieces, and NOBLE Team needed to act fast. A Phantom began to hover in front of Ruby, and she got grazed on the shoulder by a plasma blast. Getting enraged, she pulled out her rifle and knocked out the gunner quickly. She found a rocket launcher and got a lock on the Phantom. She opened fire and watched as the former dropship disentigrated. Immediatly after, the Corvette began to retreat and UNSC fighters gave chase. Ruby threw down her rocket launcher and jumped in the air with happiness. _'Ruby Rose, one. Covenant, zero!'_ She thought as she watched the fighters. A few minutes later, an orbital round pierced the ship and it crashed. Jorge walked up and threw his arm around the youngling's shoulder.

“Beautiful, ain't it?” He asked as he watched the scene unfold. “Someone should take a picture.” Ruby took that literally and pulled out her Scroll, snapping a picture before it sank into the ocean.

“Nice work, by the way.” Jorge told her.

“Um...thank you.” Ruby said shyly.

“Five, six, get down to the science wing. Dr. Halsey wants a debrief and Command's saying we're all hers.” Carter ordered over the radio.

“Repeat? Sounded like you said Halsey.” Jorge asked.

“I did.” Carter deadpanned.

“Copy that. On our way.” Jorge told him. “Don't need Command to tell me...been all hers half me life.”

“Were you a test subject for her?” Ruby asked as they walked.

“Yep. My armor? Custom made by her.” Jorge answered, pointing to the various “unique features” of his suit.

T he two arrived in the science wing, and Kat waved at Ruby upon entrance. Carter and Halsey were in a heated argument.

“I requested your assistance, Commander, and do not need a report of events that occur on my own doorstep.” Halsey told him angrily. “What I do require is a detailed account of your previous engagement-Jorge. It's been too long...What in the world have you done to my armor?”

“Just some...additions I've made.” Jorge told her.

“Indeed.” Halsey replied. “Visegrad Relay. It's data center was home to one of my xenoarchaeologists, Proffesor Lazlo Sorvad. Perhaps you could shed some light on his death?”

“If he was a civilian male in his mid-sixties, he died with a Covenant energy sword in his abdomen.” Carter said quickly. Kat grunted to get his attention, and then motioned to Ruby. _'You know she doesn't handle death well.'_ She mouthed. Carter rolled his eyes and turned back to Halsey.

“Elites then.” Halsey said.

“They engaged us as well. It was just after we found your scientist's daughter, ma'am. She was hiding in the-” Jorge noted.

“Irrelevant. Tell me more about the Elites.” Halsey said coldly.

“Three. Zealot class. One got by us. The leader, from the looks of 'im.” Jorge informed her.

“Zealots...you're certain?” Halsey asked him.

“Their armor configuration matched.” Jorge replied.

“I gave the order not to pursue. Our primary objective was to get the station's relay back online.” Carter said.

“Your primary objective? Commander, are you a puppet or a Spartan?” Halsey asked the leader.

“Ma'am?” Carter inquired.

“There are those at ONI, myself included, who believe the Covenant dispatch Elite advance teams to hunt down Artifacts of value to their religion. Survivor accounts suggest such teams are small, nimble, and almost always Zealot-Class.” Halsey explained to the team. “No doubt they came to the station for the abundance of ONI excavation data there...and you let them get away.”

“Data retrieval was not a Command directive. Even if we had known, we had other, more urgent matters to attend to.” Carter argued.

“Like warning the planet.” Kat piped in.

"Professor Sorvad's final entry in his field notes made reference to "a latchkey discovery". Latchkey... Not a word he would use lightly. So let's hope that the data module your Lieutenant Commander stole contains it."  Halsey said, pointing to Kat.

“Kat?” Carter asked his teammate.

"Before you ask, I was alerted the moment you attempted to access its contents. As I am with any unauthorized tap." Halsey explained. Kat walked over with the data file and slid it through a slot into the room.

"That data is classified Tier One... I could send you to the brig for interfering with my work." Halsey told her as she grabbed the file.

"Maybe you'd like to join her." Carter said in a threatening tone.

“...I'm sorry?” Halsey asked.

"We're currently under emergency planetary directive,  [WINTER CONTINGENCY](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/WINTER_CONTINGENCY) . I'm sure you're familiar with the punishment for civilian interference with a Spartan deployment."  Carter explained as he leaned in.

"Are you threatening me, Commander?" Halsey questioned.

"Just making a reading suggestion, ma'am." Carter told her casually. “Let's move, NOBLE Team.” The team walked out, with Jorge lagging behind.

“She's kinda mean.” Ruby told Kat.  
“Ugh, tell me about it.” Kat replied with an eyeroll. The team climbed into their Falcons and returned to base.

 

_Beacon_

_Later that night_

Blake and Weiss snuck into the Team WBY Dorm after spending the entire day at the infirmary. Blake looked around and noticed that Ruby's Wormhole cube was on the nightstand, and Yang was fast asleep, not even bothering to change.

“You know, I feel bad for her. As of this moment, her father and uncle are the only family she has left.” Blake whispered.

“Yeah...it's a shame.” Weiss said glumly. Blake quickly snuck onto Yang's bed and slid the covers over her before lying down in her own bed and going to sleep.

“Hey, Weiss?” Blake asked.

“Yeah?”

“Do you think Ruby is okay?”  
“I'm sure she's fine wherever she is. She's the deadliest of all of us.”

“Yeah...maybe I worry too much. Night.”

“Good night.”

And with that, team WBY drifted off to sleep, not even knowing that come tommorow, Ruby would be infiltrating enemy lines.

 

**Woo! Four hours and an ungodly amount of Vanilla Coke later, this chapter is done. I swear, I want to kill Dr. Halsey. Her dialogue is without a doubt the hardest I've had to write so far. Also, Yang is back from her vacation! Yay. Bleh, I'm going to bed.**

**Peace out.**

**-Zwill711**


	5. Nightfall

**Review responses first, as usaul.**

**To edboy4926:**

**Thanks for the comment. As for NOBLE Team, even with Ruby, some characters still may not survive. Don't worry though, our first death isn't till Long Night of Solace.**

**To Evinco:**

**I was actually going to bring that up now that you mentioned it. So, yay! Shoutout to you.**

**To 33defence:  
Wow, you're kinda common here. Anyway, what you said might slightly explain this file in my FF folder titled “The Biggest Crossover Ever. Of All Time.”**

**That's done, so on with the show.**

 

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Five-Nightfall**

 

_Reach_

_0930 Hours_

Ruby sat silently in her bunk with her Scroll out, reviewing the images. She stopped on an old photo from her first day at Beacon. A selfie Yang had taken of the two. Kat climbed up on the bunk and caught a glance of the photo.

“Friends of yours?” Kat asked, startling the girl slightly.

“Sister.” Ruby told her.

“Do you miss them sometimes? The people of your world?” Kat asked her.

“Yeah. I miss them a lot.” Ruby answered. Kat suddenly remembered something, a concept she had.

“Ruby, do you still have the cube that brought you here?” She said quickly.

“Yeah, why?” Ruby replied as she pulled it out from under her pillow.

“Come with me, I have an idea!” Kat told her, motioning to follow her. Ruby ran after her quickly, and they ended up at Kat's weapon lab. She dug around in some cabinets, before pulling out a transparent pistol and holding it up.

“This is my finest creation. The EMP Cannon. It fires an electric pulse that disables any electronics for thirty minutes.” Kat explained.

“So, what does this have to do with getting me home?” Ruby asked.

“I have a theory. If I take the core from your cube, and put it in here, I may be able to open a wormhole back to your planet.” Kat said as she begun to disassemble the weapon. “Cube. Now.” Ruby quickly passed her the cube, and she pulled out the core, placing it where the EMP generator used to be.

“Ready?” Kat asked as she aimed the weapon.

“Ready.” Ruby said as she prepared herself.  
Kat fired the weapon, with it whirring and charging, before it backfired and took most of the weapon with it. Kat was knocked into a wall by the recoil, and when she got back up, the gun was nonexistent. The core was laying on the ground, glowing a bright purple. Kat dusted herself off and picked it up, putting it in a floor safe.

“We're gonna need some more firepower.” She said as she kicked the safe shut. Jun walked into the room and knocked.

“Hey Six, come on. We're doing recon on the Covenant. Wheels up in five.” Jun announced as he walked out over to the Falcons. Ruby followed and sat next to him.

“Command wants to see what kind of power the Covvies have here. We're gonna do some recon and find out.” Jun said as he handed her a sniper rifle.

_'Finally, something I'm used to.'_ Ruby thought as she held it.

The falcon flew to it's LZ, dropping the two off in a dark area. They walked along until they got to some cliffs. Walking carefully, the hid from a Phantom flying by and moved on silently.

“Recon Team Bravo, reporting in. Three and Six in position.” Jun said over his comms. “It's starting to get crowded up here, Kat.”

“Then we're closing in. Report any Covenant structures or devices. Direct action may be necessary.” Kat informed them.

“Copy that.” Jun said as he grabbed his rifle. “When Kat runs an op, direct action is always necessary.”

Ruby chuckled slightly and readied her weapon.

“Here. Take these. Armor piercing rounds. Very expensive, so make every shot count.” Jun told her as he handed Ruby a clip. She nodded and loaded her gun. They continued walking along the cliffs, searching for any structure that looked like it didn't belong. Jun climbed up a set of rocks and motioned for Ruby to jump.

“I'll be in touch. Be careful down there.” Jun told her. Ruby jumped off the cliff, activating her speed to stop her fall. She landed lightly on the ground, and walked on.

"Recon Bravo, the sector ahead is dark to electronic surveillance." Kat alerted them.

"Covenant can block our instruments?" Jun asked.

"So it would seem, and Command wants to know what they're hiding." Kat told them before the radio clicked off. Ruby snuck up behind the elite and crouched.

“He's yours...do it quietly.” Jun ordered. Ruby acknowledged the order and jumped on the Elite's back, pulling out her knife and stabbing it in the throat.

“Not bad...” Jun commented as Ruby walked up a path to higher ground. She saw some grunts sleeping and beat them silently with her Magnum. She had modified her Magnum with a laser sight and flash concealer. She jumped down and landed next to a Covenant radio tower. More sleeping Grunts. She gave them the same treatment and moved on. She hid behind a rock as she found a human settlement taken over by the Covenant. Ruby growled and tightened the grip on her rifle.

“Whoa, easy Six! Don't give away our position!” Jun yelled over the radio. "Recon Bravo to Noble Two, stand by for contact report."

"Standing by to copy, over." Kat replied.

"We have eyes on multiple hostiles patrolling a settlement. This what we're looking for, Kat?" Jun asked.

"Negative, too small, you're not in the dark zone yet. Engage at your own discretion, but keep moving." Kat ordered.

“That's all I needed to hear.” Ruby said menacingly, before standing up and readying her weapon. She opened fire on a golden Elite, killing it instantly. She managed to off four more before running out of ammo. At that point, she jumped into the compound and pulled out her Magnum, blazing a path through the hostile forces like a wildfire. After getting a moment of peace, she reloaded her sniper and steadied it, using her magnum as an impromptu recoil dampener. She had an idea to use her sniper more like a shotgun. A Phantom hovered in the center of the complex, dropping off troops.

"Incoming. Looks like we really pissed them off." Jun noted as he provided cover fire.

Ruby blasted through the rest filled by pure rage. Yang had once noted that “She may look cute and cuddly, but if you thought I was bad when I'm angry, wait till you see her.” She refused to let the Covenant get away with slaughtering humans and taking their settlements. Once she calmed down, she realized the complex was actually more damaged now that she was done, and alien corpses littered the ground.

“Remind me never to piss you off...” Jun joked as he rejoined her. “Come on. This way.”

They entered a clearing, and saw Covenant troops being attacked by large creatures.

"Look at that!" Jun yelled out. The creatures finished off the aliens, then turned to face Ruby and Jun. They charged them, and Ruby disappeared in a flash of red, landing on the back of one. She activated her Armor Lock she took with her, and knocked out the beast. She did the same to the other one.

“Why'd you spare them?” Jun asked.

“It's just an animal minding it's own business. Why kill it?” Ruby said as she pointed to them. Jun nodded.

"Kat, pick any of that up?" Jun said over comms.

"Affirmative, Recon Bravo. It's an indigenous creature, called Gúta." Kat informed.

"Six, there's a trail up ahead through the rocks. Let's take it." Jun said as he pointed.

They walked along in silence, passing a group of Moa along the way. They soon heard gunfire as they neared the end of the trail.

"Gunfire. Magnums, security side-arms. Standard issue." Jun noted quickly. They arrived at a cliff and held position. A gas station could be seen below.

"Noble Two, that's some sort of pump station. Got eyes on civilians, I'm thinking more local militia, they've engaged hostiles." Jun said.

"Move to assist. They may have intel we need." Kat ordered.

"You heard her, Six. Keep those civilians alive." Jun told Ruby. Ruby slid down the face of the cliff, landing right outside. She walked in and pulled out her Magnum. She shot an Elite minor in the head, and watched as he flopped to the ground. Two grunts tried to run at her, but she shot them before they even got close. **(AN: I swear, Ruby is slowing becoming a Terminator. I'm just saying.)**

Jun gave covering fire, and before they knew it, the enemies had all fallen. Ruby spun her Magnum on her finger and put it in her holster.

"Little more action than we're used to. You Spartans are good in a fight." One of the civilians said.

"What are you doing here? Whole area's supposed to be evacuated." Jun told them.

"Didn't like leaving it to someone else to protect our home. So we came back, for this. We have 'em hidden all over the territory." The militia leader said as he motioned to some weapon cases. The cases automatically opened to reveal shotguns, DMRs, and Battle Rifles. Ruby immediately grabbed a shotgun and exchanged it for her sniper.

"You know this stuff is stolen." Jun pointed out.

"What? You gonna arrest me?" The leader said tauntingly.

"No. Gonna steal it back." Jun said as he picked up a DMR and as many ammo clips as he could carry.

Ruby looked up as she heard the distinct humming of a Phantom.

“Dropship! Defensive positions!” Jun barked as the men dived into cover.

Jun pulled out his DMR and sniped some of the elites off, while Ruby charged in with her shotgun, one shotting every enemy in her warpath. Jun fought off some enemies before catching up with her.

“Switch!” He yelled as Ruby pulled out her Magnum and dove into a crouch. He jumped over her, grabbing her shotgun off her back, and in return, she nabbed his DMR and opened fire. A needle rifle round whizzed past Ruby, barely grazing her shoulder.

“Sniper!” She yelled as the two dove into cover. They held off the Covenant charging towards them, as their cover continued to be pelted with needler rounds. Ruby looked around at the debris and objects around her, before turning to Jun.

“I have an idea! Cover me!” Ruby said. She dashed over to the debris and primed herself to use her speed semblance. This tactic worked before, it'd work now. She lowered her stance, before dashing off in a red cyclone. The sheer force of her speed dragged the debris with her, and she charged towards the Phantom the snipers were shooting out of. She jumped inside and did a quick turn with her heel, as the debris barreled quickly towards the vehicle. She sped towards the back door and did a backflip out, watching as the Phantom exploded and crashed. She skipped back over to Jun, and he had a look of pure astonishment.

“How did-what? That was-and that was...” Jun stammered. Ruby laughed and holstered her weapon.

“Road leads to a hydro-electric plant, but the gate doesn't work.” The militia leader told them.

"Alternate route?" Jun asked, his composure regained.

"We use the riverbed to smuggle rations, weapons-” The militia leader started.

"Basically anything the UNSC considers contraband." Jun paraphrased “Show us.” The leader nodded and started along the road.

The troopers led them to the riverbed, and they walked in, trodding through the shallow waters.

"Where does this riverbed lead?" Jun whispered.

"Straight to the hydro plant. We dammed this river up forty-five years ago, plant powers every settlement in the territory. Shame if it all gets wasted." The leader explained.

"Doing what we can." Jun said simply. A Phantom passes by overhead, and Ruby ducks against the wall.

"Hold up. Covie dropship, take cover." Jun ordered quietly. The phantom circled about for a bit then left.

"OK, clear. Let's move." Jun said as he stood up. The team continued on and arrived at the hydro plant. They saw it was overtaken by Covenant, but more interestingly, there was a large pylon emanating energy. Jun sat next to Ruby and looked through the scope of his sniper.

"Kat, are you seeing this? Covenant structure, kind of a big [pylon](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Covenant_pylon). Heavily fortified." Jun asked over the comms.

"That's the source of our dark zone." Kat told them.

"Ok, consider it gone." Jun replied.

"Negative, stick a remote det charge on it. Command's planning something big, they say that pylon dies at dawn. And besides...you don't want to get Six hyper.” Kat ordered. Jun looked over and noticed Ruby looked fairly tired. The militia leader walked up behind them and looked at the pylon.

"We're gonna blow it?" The leader asked.

"No, we're gonna clear the area, and I'm gonna plant a remote det charge. You want to provide some cover, go right ahead." Jun told him. “Six, stay up here and cover me.”

“Okay.” Ruby replied tiredly. She laid against a rock and traded Jun his sniper for her shotgun.

Jun and the men slid down the hill and onto the main road. They assaulted the compound, holding off the Covenant while Ruby tried her best to shoot them. After a while, the area was clear and Jun walked over to the pylon.

"All clear, Six. This is gonna take a minute, keep your eyes peeled." Jun told her as he planted the charge. Two phantoms landed, dropping off a special Elite team and two hunters. Ruby saw this and with newfound energy, rushed into the plant. She blindfired her Magnum at the elites and jumped into the pylons grav lift. She powered up one of the turrets and ripped it off, putting it to use against the hunters. The blasts bounced off their armor though, but it certainly weakened them. When the gun ran out of energy, she threw it down and charged the Hunter, using her speed to get behind it. She then opened fire into it's weak point with her pistol. One down. The militia was holding their own against the elites, so she could focus on the other hunter. The hunter aimed it's fuel rod cannon as she was trying to fight some of the Elites off, and the blast hit her right in the chest, knocking her into a wall and onto the floor.

“No!” Jun yelled as he ran away from the pylon to fight the Hunter. He quickly dodged behind it and unloaded every shell in the shotgun into his back. The hunter dropped dead, and he ran over to Ruby. Her armor and shields had absorbed most of the pain, but she was still knocked out. He helped finish the Elite team, walked over to the Pylon, and secured the charge.

"Recon Bravo to Noble Two, charge placed." Jun said over the comms.

"Somewhere inconspicuous, I hope.” Kat joked.

"Stuck it inside the pylon's power supply." Jun informed. “Also, Six got hit by a hunter. She'll be okay, but she's knocked out.”

"Alright. Keep pushing into the dark zone. Command wants to know what the Covenant are hiding." Kat ordered. “And we have a medevac inbound for Six.”

Jun nodded and continued on, leaving the Militia to watch Ruby. He hacked a gate, and continued on, entering the dark zone.

"Recon Bravo, you're heading into the dark zone now." Kat informed.

“Understood.” Jun acknowledged.

"Phantom, too close for comfort." Jun noted as he sniped out every soldier that jumped out.

He continued on, encountering a Shade. He dodged it's blasts, and hit the Grunt operator with a headshot.

“Lotta air traffic around here.” Jun noted to himself as Banshees began to fly over him.

After fighting off yet more Covenant, he turned a corner and saw the worst thing he could have seen tonight. A Covenant Corvette...hiding on Reach in plain sight.

"Noble Two, I have eyes on at least one Covenant ship." Jun announced.

"Solid copy. Don't stop now." Kat ordered. A flood of Elites came barreling out from the woodwork, and Jun pulled out his DMR. Jun cleared the area to the best of his ability, but CQC wasn't his niche.

Jun strapped his gun to his back and crawled along the ground as not to be seen. He peeked over a cliff and saw a massive covenant landing zone.

“Jackpot...” He muttered to himself. "You seeing this, Kat?"

"Confirmed. Receiving Noble Three's live visual of a Covenant strike force." Kat replied.

"That's no strike force, it's an invading army. If we're gonna smother this thing, we need to go in hard and fast." Jun advised her.

"Agreed. All recon teams disengage and fall back. Sun will be up in a few hours...and its going to be a very busy day." Kat ordered, as Jun heard a Falcon nearby. He walked to the extraction point and climbed in to return to NOBLE Base. He couldn't believe it. An entire Covenant army, right here on Reach. They needed to deal with this...and fast.

 

_NOBLE Base_

_0500 Hours_

_Infirmary_

Ruby groggily sat up in the infirmary bed, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She winced in pain as she lifted herself up.

_'Where am I? What happened to me?'_ She thought as she looked around. She didn't have armor on, and she was wearing her skinsuit. She had bandages on her lower chest, and someone had left her assault rifle on a nightstand. That last one was probably Kat. A few minutes later, Kat came in to check on her.

“Hey, you're awake.” She said as she sat down on the bed.

“What happened?” Ruby asked her.

“You took a real bad hit. We had to extract you.” Kat told her.

“What about the Covenant? Did we get info?” Ruby said worriedly.

“Don't worry, Jun got some good info. Turns out the Covenant has an entire army on Reach. We're going to help with an assault at 0800 hours. You, meanwhile, are staying here.” Kat said, showing her the video on her tacpad.

“But I can help!” Ruby pleaded.

“And I appreciate that...but right now, you need to rest.” Kat said sternly. She patted her on the head and walked out. Ruby sighed and fell back on the bed, forgetting about her bandages.

“Whoa, that hurt!” Ruby exclaimed.

 

_Beacon_

_Team RWBY Dorm_

_07:30 AM_

 

“Hey, Yang?” Blake asked as she ate breakfast with her team. “Are you okay? You haven't been yourself lately.”  
“What do you mean?” Yang said as she crossed her arms.  
“I mean, it's pretty obvious you're anxious. You're not sleeping, you're not eating, and you're not even doing your hair in the mornings.” Weiss commented. “Every morning, guaranteed, you hog the bathroom for an hour to do your hair.”

“I'm. Fine.” Yang growled. She was scratching slightly at her arm.

“You know, you have a tell when you're anxious. You cross your arms and scratch.” Blake told her. Yang saw this and dropped her arms.

“I'm just...I'm just worried about Ruby is all.” Yang said.

“I'm sure she's alright. She's the toughest person we know.” Weiss replied.

“I don't trust those Wormhole cubes. You never know what you'll find.” Yang told them.

“Yeah. Let's get to class.” Blake said as she collected up the dishes.

 

**Whew! Another chapter done. Halo Reach is tough to write. Anyway, Ruby is injured, and her sister has Yangxiety. Stay tuned for next time when the Reach conflict reaches _the tip of the spear_.**

 

**And who knows? Maybe Ruby's aura will heal her enough to get some shots in too.**


	6. Untested and Unproved

**Review responses, as usual.**

**To edboy4926:**

**Yes, she did survive with aura AND armor shields, but it still pierced her aura. Thus the bandages.**

**To Cabal47:**

**As the creator of the wormhole cubes, I can gladly tell you that she will not be joining John-117. Kat will keep trying, till she gets it right and sends her home.**

**That's done, so on with the show!**

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Six-Untested and Unproven.**

 

_0800 Hours_

_NOBLE Base Infirmary_

 

Ruby jolted up in her infirmary bed, her eyes wide. She looked at the holographic display on the nightstand. It was 0800 hours, which meant NOBLE was beginning their assault. The doctor walked in and rushed over to her.

“Ah, you're awake! How are you feeling?” The doctor asked her.

“Get me my armor.” Ruby growled.

“I-I'm sorry, but your armor was damaged beyond repair by the fuel rod blast.” The doctor told her.

“Well...I'll need some new armor.” She said as she threw off her bedsheets and marched to Kat's lab. She remembered seeing a large suit, and she needed it.

“You know, you are an exceptionally fast healer.” The doctor noted as he tailed behind her.

“Aura. Heals all wounds.” Ruby deadpanned as she scanned the lab. She set her sights on a large and bulky suit of armor. It was black with yellow accents. Not what she'd paint it, but that didn't matter. What did matter was it's 850-round, six-barreled Lucifer AMGG attached to the right arm, and the tri-barreled LAU-1810 missile launcher armed with SGM-151 heat-seeking missiles on the shoulders.

“No...you can't be serious? That thing was scrapped. By Doctor Halsey herself!” The doctor argued.

“Well, guess what? I'm not the biggest fan of Dr. Halsey! Now shut up and turn it on!” Ruby yelled as she tried to figure out how to get in. The doctor began to sweat. He fumbled around with the keyboard, unable to stop shaking.  
“You know what, get out! My team needs me _now_!” Ruby barked as she pushed the man aside, and quickly found the routines to power up the suit. A generator  hooked up to the wall whirred to life, and the chest of the armor slid open with an audible hiss. A message appeared on the screen as this happened.

 

** Thank you for activating the HRUNTING  Mark I Prototype Armor Defense System! **

**Please enter suit now.**

Ruby obeyed, changing into a skin suit in the closet. She stepped into the armor, and the chest closed her in. A mechanical arm fitted a helmet to the armor with a click. Ruby stepped off the stand the armor was in, and landed on the floor with a boom from the weight of the suit. She slowly marched outside, and when she was in a clear area, she activated the afterburners on the suit. She launched off the ground, and headed to the battle.

_'Don't you worry...the cavalry's on it's way.'_ Ruby thought as she increased her thrust, breaking the sound barrier.

 

_Reach_

_0847 Hours_

 

“Det charge link ready! Firing in three...two...one!” Kat said over the comms as the Covenant pylon seen last night exploded in the distance. A squadron of Banshees flew down over the invasion force, and they blew up a bridge. Kat tried to jump her Warthog over the bridge, and fails. She falls on her back on the other side, with an Elite Zealot standing over her. The Elite prepares to make his stab with an energy sword, and Kat closes her eyes. She hears thrusters, and a familiar voice.

“Look out below!” Ruby yells as she stomps on top of the Zealot with her suit. Kat opened her eyes, and saw she was wearing her prototype suit.

“Ruby? What are you doing here?! What are you doing here in _that_ armor?!” Kat questioned.

“No time to explain, we've got a battle to win.” Ruby told her as she loaded her armor's machine guns. Kat nodded and pulled out her Magnum and they charged forward. Well, Kat charged. Ruby just kinda menacingly lumbered over. Two Banshees fly over, and Ruby quickly takes one down with her machine gun.

“Hey, six! There's a long range cannon on the back of the suit. Use that against Banshees.” Kat informed her. Ruby reached behind her and raised the cannon over her shoulder. She locked on to the other craft, and fired. It crashed into a cliff in a glorious blaze.

"Kat, Six, what's your status?" Carter inquired over the radio.

"Pylons are down, we're pushing up the hill." Kat told him.

They ran up the hill, encountering heavy resistance along the way. Of course it was no problem for Ruby's gatling cannon. A group of Fuel Rod turrets took aim at her.

“Not this time!” She yelled as she raised her gatling gun as a shield, successfully deflecting the shots. She slung over her long range rifle, and obliterated the turrets. A Pelican flew overhead and finished off the stragglers, dropping off a Rocket Warthog.

"Kat, be advised: [ONI](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Office_of_Naval_Intelligence) has identified 2 hostile anti-aircraft guns southwest of your location." Carter informed them.

"Copy, Commander. New target, Six. Shut down those AA guns. I'm going to commandeer that Warthog. You use the suit thrusters." Kat ordered Ruby. Ruby nodded and activated her jets, launching into the sky. She suddenly had an idea. Ruby steeled herself and launched almost 8000 feet up into the sky. She cut off her jets right over the AA gun and put herself in a kicking position.

"[2 Lima](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/2_Lima) 4 to Noble One, those guns are pounding us with high-velocity plasma shells!" Someone yelled over the radio.

"Which would mean a strike by the [Frigate](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/UNSC_frigate) [_Grafton_](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/UNSC_Grafton) is also out of the question." Auntie DOT chimed in.

"Noble Six, all our birds are stuck out of range unless you can do something about those guns." Carter told Ruby over the radio.

“Okay-just, everyone stop talking to me at once! I'm working on it.” Ruby told them. 5000 feet. Things were starting to heat up now. Kat arrived at the AA gun with a Marine and held off the alien force.

“Ruby, where are you?!” Kat asked as she drifted about the battlefield.

“To the left and 4000 feet above you.” Ruby told her as she neared the cannon.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

“Sky punch.” Ruby told her excitedly. 2000 feet and dropping fast.

A minute later, the large cannon came into the view. She used her thrusters to level out and flattened her body to kick it. She slammed into the Tyrant AA Gun at Mach 4, completely smashing through and landing out the other side. The gun exploded and Kat rushed over to her. Ruby pushed herself out of the crater she made and stood up.

“That was fun! I wanna go again!” Ruby screamed excitedly.

“Don't. Ever. Do that. Again.” Kat said sternly as she dusted off her armor. Ruby grumbled and readied her weapons.

"Control, [2 Lima 4](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/2_Lima_4): permission to commence bombing runs, heading 224.6, over." 2 Lima 4 said over the radio. Two UNSC Frigates and a squad of longswords fly over the former AA gun.

"Good work, Noble Six. UNSC air support: skies are clear." Carter said.

"Copy. 2 Lima 4, bombing run, heading 224.6, permission granted - out." The ship said as it begun to fly over a group of Scarabs. It destroyed two and disabled the third.

“Come on, let's go. Use your thrusters to speed along.” Kat ordered as she returned to the warthog.

Ruby nodded and activated her thrusters, launching down the road at an incredible pace. She came across a Wraith and readied her rockets, drifting along. She fired two missiles and the Wraith exploded. Next to her was a partially destroyed bridge. Kat would need a portable bridge, but Ruby could jump it. She lined herself up, primed her engines, and launched over to the other side with a slam.

She traversed over a bit of broken road, and arrived at a mining facility. Kat pulled up a minute later.

“I know they scrapped it…but that suit has some good thrusters.” Kat noted.

“What are we dealin' with here?” Ruby asked.

"Noble Six, there's a mining facility near your location, the Covenant are using it as a Command outpost. Troopers on site have already engaged." Carter explained.

The two move up to the entrance, and see the Marines pinned down by a Shade Turret. Ruby popped up a Reverse Bubble Shield, and marched towards the turret. She flipped up her Rifle and destroyed it. They walked in with the troops, and marched forward.

"New intelligence: friendly forces near the Covenant outpost have spotted a high value target. An [Elite](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Sangheili) [Zealot](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Sangheili_Zealot) in fact." Auntie DOT noted over the comms.

"A Zealot? We're onto something big here, Commander." Kat told him.

"Eyes on the prize, Noble. Take out that Zealot if you get the chance, but keep movin' towards the spires." Carter replied.

They moved into the facility, encountering resistance as they went. Nothing major, couple of grunts and couple of Jackals.

After a while, they arrived in a courtyard area, with large amounts of Covenant. Ruby activated her jetpack, and hovered over the alien forces, firing her gatling gun as she flew. Within minutes, everyone including the Zealot, were dead. She landed down and observed her handiwork.

“Meh. Gatling guns don't have the best accuracy.” Ruby noted. She dropped into the building and exited a garage door. A couple of Grunts were trying to escape, but Ruby quickly dashed that hope, going as far as knocking a Revenant into the canyon wall.

_'Yang would love this suit.'_ Ruby thought as she  reloaded her weapons . Kat walked out of the garage and looked around.

“Great. You destroyed every vehicle that we needed to get to our next stop.” Kat said sarcastically as she crossed her arms.

“I could always carry you.” Ruby suggested.  
“You can't be-Hey! Wait! What are you doing?!” Kat yelled as Ruby picked her up and slung her over her shoulder. She lowered into a crouch and powered up her jets, speeding along to the next AA gun. There were a couple elites, but no problems killing them.

"Update, Six: scans show another Covenant AA gun ahead of your location. I want you to neutralize that gun, by any means necessary." Carter ordered over the radio. Ruby smiled devilishly knowing her plan already. The two arrived at a broken bridge, and Ruby set Kat down. It was a heavily occupied gun, with Wraiths and at least two Hunters. Ruby winked at Kat behind her helmet, and took off.

“She's such a great soldier...yet she acts like a child.” Kat muttered angrily as she pulled out her pistol.

Ruby climbed to the same altitude as before, and hovered over the AA gun. She tried to figure out her angle of attack, but while she was doing that, her jets were failing from extensive use. A warning indicator appeared on her HUD and she dashed it away. Soon after, her afterburners cut out and she began to fall. She tried to aim for the cannon, but she was flailing all over the place. Instead of hitting the cannon, she went through it, and smashed into the floor in front of the power core. She slowly raised her arm to fire a missile, and destroyed the gun. As she lied there on the floor, another warning appeared on her HUD.

**WARNING!**

**EXTENSIVE DAMAGE SUSTAINED.**

**THRUSTERS-OFFLINE.**

**SHIELDS-OFFLINE.**

**AUXILIARY FUNCTIONS-OFFLINE.**

**ARMOR EQUIPMENT-OFFLINE.**

**SUIT EJECTION IMMINENT.**

_'Wait, what do you mean Suit Ejection?'_ Ruby thought as she silently panicked. The suit chestplate hissed open, and Ruby took the helmet off and threw it on the floor of the building. Kat rushed in and crouched next to her.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Kat asked worriedly.

“Armor...destroyed.” Ruby gasped out. Kat looked down and saw that while she looked okay, the crash clearly brought back the pains from her engagement the previous night.

“Stay right here. I'll get you a set of temporary armor.” Kat said as she activated her comms. “This is Noble Two, requesting ordinance drop 0579.”

“Roger that, we'll have it by in a few minutes.” Command replied.

"Well done, Six. [ONI needs](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Office_of_Naval_Intelligence) up-close recon on those Spires, we're gonna fly you the rest of the way." Carter told them.

“Fine. I'm a bit angry anyway.” Ruby said as she stood up and grabbed a plasma pistol off a dead grunt.

She walked outside and saw a Pelican dropping off troops. Most of the Covenant troops were dead, and a phantom was inbound. The drop pod Kat ordered landed nearby, and the door popped off to reveal a suit of ODST Battle Armor and a shotgun.

"[Jorge](http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Jorge-052) has a Falcon inbound to your position. Lieutenant, highlighting the LZ now." Kat told her as she clicked her tacpad. A small firefight later and the falcon landed.

"Commander, I'm going to set up a forward observation post here." Kat said over comms as Ruby climbed on.

"Copy that, I'm waiting on new intel. See what you can see, Carter out." Carter said as the radio clicked off. Kat waved goodbye to Ruby as she lifted off.

“You had to know that armor was unstable.” Jorge noted.

“Yes, I did. But I was dumb. I ignored the warnings. Let's head to the spire.” Ruby said as she manned a grenade launcher, eliminating Covenant targets as they flew. They flew through the canyon and approached the spire, projecting a large shield.

"There's the spire." The Falcon pilot noted.

"Latest intel suggests these spires may be projecting electromagnetic cloaking shields." DOT commented.

"Solid copy, Dot." Carter said. The falcon arrived at the edge of the shield and hovered. Ruby pulled out her shotgun and loaded it.

“Hey, kid. We'll get you some new armor when we get back to base.” Jorge told her.

“Okay. This armor isn't as good as my old armor.” Ruby said.

“Well, that's because armor is custom made for each Spartan. And that heavy duty armor was a scrapped prototype.” Jorge explained. He looked out and noticed they were still hovering just outside.

"Priority One, pilot. Gotta know what's in there." Jorge told him as he steeled himself.

"Affirmative, sir... Here we go." The pilot said as the Falcon dived in. Ruby's armor began to briefly malfunction, but once inside the shield, it was fine. The chopper started spiraling out of control.

"We just lost all power! We're going down!" The pilot yelled.

"Lock your armor, Spartan!" Jorge barked.

“Why do heights hate me?!” Ruby yelled as she prepared for a hard landing.

"Brace for a hard landing!" The pilot yelled as they crashed.

The falcon crashed, and Ruby was thrown from it. When she pushed herself up, she saw that most of the inhabitants were dead and gear was littered about. She grabbed a jetpack and strapped it on.

"Crew's dead. We shouldn't stay here." Jorge suggested as he grabbed his machine gun. Ruby nodded and they moved on.

"Commander, we got eyes on the spire. Looks like a staging area." Jorge told Carter over comms.

"Copy, we have your visual. Dot's working the problem, stand by." Carter replied.

They fought until the Spire came into full view. A phantom seemingly appeared out of nowhere and dropped troops.

"Noble Five, ONI believes those spires to be teleportation terminals." DOT said.

"Teleporter? Linked to _what_?" Jorge asked.

"Frigate _Grafton_ is on station ready to kill that spire, but first we need to power down its shields." Carter ordered.

"Understood. Six, I'll hold these bastards off, you find a way to the top of the spire." Jorge said. Ruby acknowledged and activated her semblance, speeding towards a grav lift. She knocked a grunt aside, and dived in.

“Six, hurry up. Need you to kill that shield.” Carter ordered.

“Working on it. I'm a little busy right now.” Ruby growled as she launched upwards. The grav lift carried her to the peak of the spire, and the girl rolled out. She ran down a corridor, blasting grunts as she went. She saw a console and stood in front of it.

“Um...yeah, there's a console here and all the buttons are in Sanghelian.” Ruby said over the comms.

“Well, push some buttons! I don't know!” Carter yelled back. Ruby grunted as pulled out a plasma grenade.

_'Screw it.'_ She thought as she slammed the grenade into the console and ran. She ducked down a hallway and listened. She heard a satisfying explosion and the shield dropped almost instantaneously.  A falcon flew up next to the Spire and hovered. Ruby ran out as fast as she could and jumped, using her semblance to get some extra height. She grabbed onto the edge and pulled herself in, taking a seat.

“Get us out of here!” Carter yelled to the front. The Falcon swung around and left the area.

“Control, this is Noble One. Spire One is green and you are clear for bombing.” Carter said as the Grafton flew by. Ruby leaned out and looked at it in pure astonishment. The ship fired it's MAC round and the spire fell. Suddenly, a large beam struck through the frigate and it crashed with the spire. 

“Oh, no...Somebody tell me this ain't happening!” Jorge yelled. Ruby was in shock in her seat.

“All those people...all that work...all for nothing.” Ruby mumbled as she held her head in her hands. Ruby leaned out and looked up, seeing a Covenant corvette over the remains of the Grafton. The falcon escaped with ease and dropped off NOBLE team, minus Ruby, in a cave base they set up.

“Hey, why don't I get to tag along?” Ruby asked as she continued to sit in the falcon.

“We're getting you new armor, and we're gonna give you a medical examination.” Kat explained.

“Ugh...fiinnneee.” Ruby whined as the Falcon departed back to NOBLE Base.

 

** Oh, thank Jesus this is finally done. An 18 minute level took 3 days to write. I always wanted to write about that prototype armor though. It got one fight scene in Halo:Legends but I still thought it was cool. Now I have a headache, and I'm tired, so I'm going to go watch Full Metal Alchemist. **

**Peace out.**

**-Zwill711**


	7. Why are there six pedals if there are only four directions?

**Review responses, as usaul.**

**To Cabal47:**

**Yeah...but let me explain my reasoning. Her team was charging into overwhelming odds with little to no chance of success...her armor was smashed, and she needed a suit and Kat just happened to have a prototype suit. Think about this real quick. Your team is in danger. Your armor is wrecked. Wouldn't you use whatever you could find to help them? As for the ODST armor, ODST BDU is one-size-fits all, while the SPARTAN armor is custom fit and made for each person.**

**To edboy4926:**

**I've always wanted to write about the prototype armor. And there was reason to it being destroyed. It was an old suit, that got little to no use, and then this teenager comes in and pushes it to it's limits. Before Ruby's arrival, the most it might have been used for is digging a Scorpion out of a ditch. It hurt to break that suit, but I had it planned from the start.**

**With that done, let's get this show on the road!**

 

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Seven-Why are there six pedals if there are only four directions?**

 

 

“Th-this is incredible. You suffered mass physical trauma, yet your wounds have already been healed? And despite that, you still haven't contracted PTSD!” The doctor exclaimed as he flipped through his notes.

“Yeah, I'm kinda awesome like that.” Ruby said with a smirk as she sat up on the bed. “So, can I get back to my team now?”

“Well, let's see...you're already healed after just a couple hours, and mentally you're fine.” The doctor noted as he contemplated it. “Okay, you're real lucky, kid. Your armor that we fitted you for is built and ready.” Ruby practically jumped in anticipation.

“Can I see it?! I wanna put it on!” Ruby said quickly.

“Yeah. Follow me.” The doctor said as he slipped his clipboard onto his desk and walked out. They walked across the base and into the armory. Ruby laid eyes on the red and white beast of armor on the wall. Custom built just for her, it had everything. Tacpad, UA/Counterassault chestplate, Gungnir shoulder pauldrons. And last but not least, the HAZOP helmet with CNM-I addition. Ruby almost passed out at the sight of it, but instead dashed over and quickly began to slip the armor on. She tightened the gauntlets on her arm and powered up the tacpad. She slipped the legs on next, securing her Magnum to it while she was at it. The breastplate and the helmet came last. The chest had an extra plate of armor on the lower abdomen to compensate for explosives. She headed over to a locker to get a weapon, and picked up the shotgun she had ordered.

“Well, how do you feel?” The doctor asked.

“I feel great! I feel like blowing something up!” Ruby answered excitedly.

“Okay then...I'll ring up a pilot, and we'll get you back to your team.” The doctor told her as he pulled out a radio.

“Yay!” Ruby said as she rushed out to the Falcons parked in the base. A pilot waved her down and she got in.

 

_Reach_

_Szurdot Ridge_

 

Ruby watched from the Falcon as a Scarab marched about the ridge, leaving a thundering boom with each step. The Falcon flew past it and hovered near the cave NOBLE Team was camped in. Ruby stood up and jumped in the cave, reuniting with her squad.

“Hey, six. Nice new armor.” Kat said as she looked up at her. Ruby nodded and sat down. Jorge walked in a minute later carrying a large crate.

“Help is imminent. Sixty percent of the UNSC fleet is already en route to Reach from existing deployments.” Ruby overheard DOT say. “The first battle group should arrive within forty-eight hours.”

“Forty-eight hours?...” Jun exclaimed angrily. “That's imminent?!” Jun dusted off Jorge's armor.

“Uh-oh. Who's your money on this time?” Jun asked.

“Her.” Jorge answered.

“You always pick her.” Jun deadpanned.

“She's always had him dialed in.” Jorge said as he took off his helmet and motioned to Kat.

“That thing's crushing us...and we're waiting for backup?” Kat questioned. “They'll be backing up a graveyard.”

“All our nukes are either out-system or went down with the ships that carried them. You're preaching to the converted.” Carter told her.

“How converted?” Kat asked.

“I know that look, Kat.” Carter said as he facepalmed.

“You can say no...” Kat started.  
“No.” Carter said angrily.

“You don't even want to hear it?” Kat pleaded.

“Fine. I'll hear it.” Carter said in submission.

“Remember that accident a couple years back? Cargo ship en route to Cygnus, seven hundred dead?” Kat asked.

“Vaguely...a slip-space malfunction, right?” Carter said.

“Actually, it worked fine. The drive was mounted improperly after a service haul-out.” Kat explained. “When it fired, it teleported half the ship to Oblivion.”  
“And this is relevant...how?” Carter asked.

“A certain Covenant Super-Carrier, could, with some assistance...suffer the same unfortunate accident.” Kat suggested.

“Even for you, Kat, that's-” Carter started.

“Inspired?” Kat finished.”

“Not the word I would use...” Carter said. Jorge and the crew finished catching up and walked over.

“What's going on?” Jorge asked.

“Go ahead. Explain.” Carter said as he motioned to Kat.

Kat walked up and took Emile's machete, and began to carve the plan into the floor.

“Don't cut yourself.” Emile joked.

"Objective? Destroy Covenant Carrier in geosynchronous orbit above us." Kat said as she drew. Jorge leaned in next to Carter.

"This sanctioned, sir?" Jorge whispered.

"What do you think?" Carter growled.

“Oh.” Jorge said.

"Method? A slip-space drive in lieu of the nukes we don't have. Delivery system? Us. Solvable? Getting us up there. That, and getting our hands on a slip-space drive." Kat explained to the team.

Kat stood up and handed Emile back his machete.

"So...all we need is orbit-capable transport, and the single most expensive piece of equipment made by man?" Carter asked as he folded his arms.

"As a soldier in the field I couldn't possibly have access to those kinds of resources- that said, a good place to look might be... I don't know, the nearest nonexistent launch site in the nonexistent Sabre Program, dismissed by three administrations as preposterous rumor... And in which our newest member was _certainly_ never a pilot." Kat said as she motioned to Ruby. The team turned to face her, and Jorge facepalmed.

“No. No, no no, no, no! You can't be serious! She can't drive a car, much less a starfighter!” Jorge ranted.

“Oh, shut up, you wimp. It's just flying a jet in anti-gravity. Not hard to learn.” Kat argued. Jorge grunted and looked at Ruby.

“I swear to god, if you do so much as one barrel roll when we're up there, I'll shoot you myself.” Jorge told her as he walked off to a corner in the cave. Carter sighed and pulled out a datapad.

“I'll contact Holland...” Carter groaned.

 

_Later_

_SABRE Program Launch Range, Farkas Lake, Eposz_

 

Ruby leaned out of the Falcon and gazed at the various SABRE facilites. The air was chilly, and the deep blue lake gave color to the land. The chopper set down on a beach, and NOBLE Team climbed out.

“Bit of a hike to the launch facility.” Jorge noted.

“Any closer is too hot to land.” Carter said.

The team nodded and charged forward. Squadrons of Seraphs could be seen flying about, and Grunts patrolled the land. Ruby snuck behind a rock and pulled out her Magnum. She lined up a shot, and popped the head off a grunt. The grunts began running scared, and she ended their lives too. A covenant drop pod crashed down, and an Elite Minor bursted out. Ruby ducked and weaved to avoid his attacks, and pulled out her shotgun. She blasted until the shields fell, and then twirled her gun around to hold it like a bat, killing him in one swoop. Ruby carried on, running and gunning as she went. The enemies all fell beneath her strength. A Seraph struck the launch facility, and Ruby sped on. A Spirit Dropship let off a new wave. Ruby pulled out her pistol and used her semblance to shoot a Jackal in the back of the brain. A grunt fired a needler at her, leaving a good size prick. She grunted and pulled it out of her armor, ran over to the grunt and stabbed him in the skull with it. **(AN: Huh. I'm really more violent than usual today…)**

She kicked the grunt down and looked towards the launch facility entrance. Wasting no more time, she ran over as fast as she could. An Elite blocked her path, and she jumped on his back and assassinated him.

She saw a couple weapon crates. One had a drop shield, so she attached that to her armor and headed inside. A couple of marines greeted her and held the alien forces back while she walked down the dark hallways.

“Still can't believe Holland said yes to this.” Jorge muttered as he followed Ruby. There was a good sized chunk in the wall from the Seraph, but Ruby paid it no mind. They walked into the control room. An elite threw a Marine into a wall, and Ruby snuck behind it, grabbing onto his back. The Elite tried to shake her off, but she forced him to the ground and stabbed him with her knife. NOBLE Team walked to the front of the room, and the observation window opened. Ruby gasped at what she saw.

“Oh my god...That's the SABRE?!” Ruby exclaimed as she pressed her face against the glass. Kat pulled her back, and she regained her composure.

“Five, Six, get to the SABRE before the Covenant wreck it!” Carter barked.

“Don't have to tell me twice!” Ruby yelled as she sped off in a flurry of rose petals.

“Can-can she stop doing that? I'm getting real sick of cleaning up rose petals.” Jorge said as he followed her.

Ruby climbed in the front of the ship, with Jorge taking the passenger seat. The cockpit closed in and a robotic voice appeared.

“Struts disengaged. Commencing launch in 5...4...3...2...Launch.” The voice said as the SABRE engines roared to life. Ruby was pinned to her seat by the force and the fighter launched skyward.

Her bones were rattled as the g-force slammed her, before passing out.

They broke through the atmosphere, and the boosters broke off leaving the SABRE in it's purest form. Ruby woke up and quickly righted the ship.

“Wha-what happened?” Ruby asked groggily.

“You pulled some serious g's on our ascent. You passed out.” Jorge explained. Ruby nodded and took the controls, hovering in front of Anchor Nine.

“Holland here. Welcome to Operation UPPERCUT. Take a moment to learn the controls, then meet up with Anchor Nine and Frigate Savannah.” Holland said over comms. Ruby flew the ship about and cruised in front of the station.

“Savannah Actual to SABRE teams, be advised, we have bogeys inbound.” The captain of the ship said.

“Anchor Nine to all UNSC ships, station defenses are done, requesting combat support till we can bring them back online.” They said over comms.

“Here we go, Six. Show them what you can do.” Jorge said. Ruby nodded and gunned the engines towards the hostiles. Ruby saw a Banshee and quickly maneuvered to intercept it. She fired her machine guns and it exploded. She flipped her plane around and took out another one quickly. She did a quick spin, and fired her missiles at yet another Banshee. She performed this routine for a few minutes, until the skies were clear. Next was a wave of Seraphs. Ruby fired her missiles futilely at them, and then switched to her cannons. She destroyed the shields on one and smashed straight through, leaving nothing but debris in her wake. She blew up another one and did a U-turn to go after the next. Once that was done, the Anchor Nine defenses came online.

“Anchor Nine to all craft, we're showing a large attack force. Air patrols and SABRE teams are directed to engage.” They said over the comms. Ruby flicked her plane around and turned to face the invasion force. She outmaneuvered Seraphs and Banshees alike, shattering each and every one.

A squadron of Phantom Gunboats materialized, and Ruby charged straight for them. Her ship got slammed by a rocket, but she shook it off and returned the favor. The ship gave off a satisfying explosion and she moved onto the next. She dodged out of the way of the crossfire, and hit another Phantom. Two down. She quickly took down the other two, getting hit constantly with plasma. With the gunboats down, she headed up to Anchor Nine.

“Anchor Nine to all UNSC ships, all targets neutralized. Bravo Niner, you are clear to dock. Activating marker.” The station control informed them over the comms.

“Holland to Bravo Niner, Noble Five, you ready to go?” Holland asked.  
“Affirmative.” Jorge answered as they docked.

Mechanical arms grabbed the fighter, and they slowed to a stop. The canopy slid off, and Jorge jumped out, grabbing the door of a Pelican.

“Pull up surface grid nineteen by twenty-two.” Jorge said to DOT. A video appeared on his HUD of Sword Base. A minute later, it was glassed.

Ruby looked out at Jorge. She saw that they had attached a slipspace drive to the Pelican. Ruby clicked a button in the cockpit, and the arms released her. She backed out her SABRE and cruised over to the Savannah.

“As she's already donated her drive to the cause, UNSC Savannah will be providing local fire support. I've stuck my neck out for NOBLE on this one...don't make me regret it.” Holland said as Ruby followed the frigate.

“UNSC Savannah here. We'll be helping you out while you plant the drive.” The ship's captain said.

With that, they sped off to their destination. They hovered in front of the Corvette, when DOT piped in.

“Covenant Corvette sighted. Readings indicate they have a refueling protocol in the system.” DOT said.

After that, Ruby broke off from the group and started smashing the engines. The ships opened fire on the seraph and banshee escorts. Ruby slowed down behind the engines and hit each one with her missiles. Soon they were all disabled. She flipped around and went to help with the escort. She got the drop on a Seraph and blew it up. A banshee snuck behind her and clipped one of her engines. She maneuvered the SABRE into a reversal and pounded it with missile fire. She eliminated the escort, and followed the other fighters to a topside landing pad on the Corvette. She grabbed her shotgun and climbed out, sneaking along the platform. There was an opening in the middle to a comms center. She and the other pilots dropped in silently. Most of the elites were already dead, save for two Elite Rangers. She dropped down and smacked one in the head with her magnum, before landing gracefully.

She charged the other and punched it right in the helmet, then moved on to the main hangar.

Strangely, the artificial gravity had not activated, and everything was deafened.

She used this to her advantage, launching up and opening fire on another Elite with her shotgun.

He fell easily, and Ruby smashed one of the control panels in the room.

“Holland to Savannah, enemy comm relay is now offline!” Holland said as Ruby reloaded her weapons. “Alright, NOBLE, let's get that Slipspace bomb on board! Six, head for the hangar.”

“On it.” Ruby said as she headed off with the marines. A door opened, and a couple of grunts ran out. She smacked them all with the butt of her shotgun, and motioned for her team to move up.

They arrived in the Hangar, and Ruby jumped up and tossed down two grenades, taking out a fair number of hostiles.

She switched to her Magnum, and got a streak of headshots with some Elite Rangers. She dived out of the way of plasma blasts, and used her speed semblance to blast about the room, knocking enemies down as she went. She was extremely graceful in her movements as she cleared the hangar. She would land from a jump and bounce right back up. Some grunts with shields entered the room and she switched to her shotgun. She jumped up, held her shotgun with one hand, and spun around shooting the Grunts.

“Six, go for those shield controls. I need in.” Jorge ordered over the radio. With corpses littering the hangar, the artificial gravity kicked in and she walked up to power down the shield.

The pelican slid smoothly into the Hangar, and Jorge climbed out with his team.

“Alright...Six, get your fireteam to the bridge and begin the refueling run with the supercarrier. Five, watch the bomb and discourage the curious.” Holland ordered.

“My pleasure.” Jorge said as he lifted up his machine gun. “Hear that, Lieutenant? I'll be all by my lonesome back here.”  
“Oh, you'll be fine.” Ruby said as she walked with her team to the bridge. A door opened and a large amount of Covenant burst out. Ruby bested them all, of course. They arrived in an armory and watched as the Savannah was destroyed by AA Guns.

“Break off! Break off! Damn it, I'm losing her!” The captain yelled as his ship exploded in two. An elite tried to sneak up on Ruby while she was still in shock, and she stabbed him in the brain. She pulled out her knife and angrily charged towards the bridge. She arrived in the bridge, taking care not to make noise. She grabbed a grunt by the neck, and stabbed him before kicking him down. She repeated this for the next unlucky grunt. She snuck behind an elite manning a console, jumped on his back, and stabbed him in the eye. The elite fell before her, and onto the next victim.

The next elite got the same treatment. She located an Elite Grand Marshall, and jumped on his back, stuffing her knife up to the hilt in his chest. This went on till the bridge was empty.

“Good work, lieutenant. Put that corvette on a refueling path!” Holland ordered. Ruby walked over to the console, pushed the former elite aside, and punched the holographic button.

“Operation UPPERCUT is underway. Corvette en route.” Holland said.

“Six, our ride out of here has taken heavy damage, get back here.” Jorge said. Ruby reloaded her shotgun, kicked the grand marshall, and headed back to the hangar. She blasted every alien that crossed her path, and arrived in the hangar. She grabbed a plasma launcher, blew up three jackals, and rushed over to the pelican. She jumped on top with her magnum and activated her shield. With the bomb secured, she set to destroying every covenant on the ship. They were gonna pay for all the murder, all the destruction. With Jorge's help, they bested the Covenant and secured the ship.  
“Savannah did a number on the door. No way back up to the SABREs. Noble Six, form up on me.” Jorge said.

“Distance is closing on the refueling track. Seventy-six seconds to impact.” DOT said as Jorge fiddled with the bomb.

“Welp, I got good news and bad news.” Jorge said as he walked over to Ruby. “The thruster gimbal is toast and our ride is wrecked which means the only way off this slag heap is gravity.”

“And the good news?” Ruby asked.

“That was the good news.” Jorge said as he took off his helmet. “Bad news is, timer's fried. I'm gonna have to fire it manually.”

“But you'll die!” Ruby yelled.

“Life is a one way trip. We all reach our destination sooner or later.” Jorge said. “They need you down there, Six. Listen, Reach has been good to me. Time's come to return the favor.”

He ripped off his dog tags and handed them to Ruby. He grabbed her by the arm and dragged her to the edge of the door.

“Tell 'em to make it count.” Jorge said as he pushed her out into space. Ruby tumbled down and watched as the corvette met with the carrier. The bomb activated, and the ship was torn in two like Kat said.

“No...Jorge.” Ruby whimpered as she could only watch this chaos. She curled into a ball as she fell into Reach's atmosphere and began to burn up.  
“Slipspace Rupture detected.” DOT said as a covenant ship appeared. “Slipspace Rupture detected-Slipspace Rupture detected-Slipspace Rupture detected-Slipspace Rupture detected.”

Soon, a large flotilla of alien crafts were orbiting Reach.

“They're everywhere! This must be the whole damn Covenant fleet!” A mishmash of voices yelled over the radio.

_'No...no! This can't be happening!'_ Ruby screamed internally.

 

**Heheheheh...I'm a horrible person. Either way, hope you enjoyed this chapter. Took a little longer to get out for three reasons.**

**1) School.**

**2) Fullmetal Alchemist**

**3) Watch_Dogs.**

**Hopefully it won't take as long next time. A boy can dream.**

**Peace out.**

**-Zwill711**

 


	8. Losing Control

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Eight-Losing Control**

 

Ruby pushed herself up after crashing down hard on Reach. She shrugged off her reentry pack, and gazed at the remains of the Covenant Supercarrier.

_'Why, Jorge? Why'd you have to go down with the ship?'_ Ruby thought as she dug around in her pack to get her pistol. With one last stare at the former ship, she holstered her pistol and walked on. After a couple miles, she came across a city being attacked by Covenant ships.

_'I'm not gonna let innocent civilians die like this…'_ Ruby thought as she stowed Jorge's dog tags and charged in. She snuck about the town, and jumped down into a plaza. Dead civilians lined the streets.

“This is Kilo Dispatch. All available teams advance to Traxxus Tower. Evacuation will begin ASAP.” An unfamiliar voice said on the radio. Ruby looked around and saw a skyscraper with the Traxxus logo.

_'Best meet up with them.'_ Ruby thought as she headed over.

“Copy Dispatch, what's the status of the tower pad?” A gruff voice asked.

“Tower pad is green. Let's move these civilians before it changes.” Kilo Dispatch replied.

She arrived at a building with the ONI logo. A couple of skirmishers blocked her way, and she blasted them. Once they were dead, she entered the building.

“All teams, be advised. We have reports of Covenant suicide squads.” A marine warned over comms.

Just then, a Grunt charged at her with two plasma grenades. They exploded and knocked her back, but she survived. Another one charged, and she dodged out of the way, already seeing the next one. She killed it and cleared the halls.

“We need fire support out here, Corvettes raining hell on us!” The gruff voice said.  
“Copy that, firing FPF-1 at your command.” Control replied.

“Fire FPF-1, over!” The man said.

“Firing FPF-1...shot.” Control said.

Ruby walked into a maintenance hallway and saw another suicide squad.  A grunt charged her and she did a slide kick to finish him. She ducked out of the way of another charger and put a round in the back of his skull. She ran into the next room and steadied her magnum.

“Kilo 2-0, request FPF sitrep!” Kilo yelled.

“Negative, 2-0. Corvette's still poundin the hell outta us!” Control yelled in reply.

A grunt charged with grenades, but tripped and blew himself up. Another one charged up, and Ruby punched him back as soon as he got close. She crossed a bridge and grabbed some pistol ammo off a fallen soldier. She walked through a laundry room and came across more suiciders. She got lucky though, and the idiotic grunts blew themselves up. She stepped outside and grabbed an assault rifle, running down the steps. She linked up with the marines and helped fight off the Brutes.

They fought till they arrived at the tower entrance.  She entered the tower with her teammates and fought through the line of aliens. She entered the main plaza, and ducked behind cover. She shot her pistol to take out the grunts, then pulled out her assault rifle and charged forward.

Within minutes, and with the help of the marines, she cleaned out the room. She walked up to an elevator and pushed the button. A brute tried to sneak behind her, but she grabbed it by the throat, put her pistol under his chin, and blew his brains all over the wall.

“What's taking that elevator so long?” A marine asked.

“We're evacuating a group of civilians on the ground floor. Soon as that's done, we'll send the elevator back up.” Control said.

Ruby put her back to the elevator and steeled herself for combat. She heard a door open and saw the enemies pour in. Conserving her ammo, she pulled out her assault rifle and fired in bursts. She made sure to nab headshots, and she grabbed a hammer off a brute.

_'This will do nicely…'_ Ruby thought as she pointed it down and pulled a trigger. The hammer let out a blast of energy and knocked back a weapons crate, which hit a marine in the chest. After clearing another wave, the elevator opened and a marine motioned for her to get in.  
A short ride later and the doors opened. She readied her hammer and ran out.

_'I should hold on to this hammer...give it to Nora when I get home.'_ Ruby thought. She saw a weapons locker and grabbed a DMR. She saw a couple of ODSTs jumping with jetpacks and followed the path.

“Got an extra jetpack...go ahead, try it on Spartan.” An ODST told her. She walked into the cage and strapped one on. She walked back out and stood on the edge. Ruby took a deep breath and launched off.

“Wooo-hooo!” She yelled as she sped through the skies. She cut her pack off and landed on a smokestack to start sniping. A Banshee flew over, and she blasted up to hit it with her gravity hammer. The ship spun out of control and knocked into a wall. She launched off the smokestack, using her hammer to propel her. She fired her hammer again and landed smoothly on the other side of the buildings. A Jackal charged at her first, and she knocked it away with a spin of her hammer.

_'Man, I can see why Nora favors her hammer.'_ Ruby thought as she spun about in a whirlwind, using her semblance to boost her.  A brute ran at her with his own hammer, and she dodged out of the way with her jetpack, landing a headshot with her DMR as she flew. She landed and rushed up a flight of stairs. A brute hit her in the chest with his concussion rifle, but she sped over with her semblance and knocked him off the building with her hammer. She dusted off her armor quickly, and entered a large empty room. She walked up the stairs to the roof and looked out the windows. There was a large force surrounding the city. She walked out and ducked enemy plasma. She spotted a rocket launcher in a crate and switched out her hammer for it. She flew up to a vantage point and quickly fired her DMR. She dived out and flew across the plaza, firing a rocket at a Jackal along the way. She barely dodged a needler round and tucked into a roll to land. She dropped her launcher and nabbed a Focus Rifle. 

She blasted a grunt with her focus rifle and knocked it into a wall. The ODSTs took down a brute and they ran forward together.

A few minutes of fighting later and they were one room away from the helipad. Ruby ducked behind a pillar and blindfired her DMR.

“Clear that pad, Spartan!” A man yelled over the radio.

“Kind of busy here!” Ruby replied angrily as she fired her focus rifle. Two Shade Turrets were placed on the pad, and she destroyed both of them. A Phantom hovered over, and she snatched an assault rifle off the floor, opening fire on every alien that came out. Once the Helipad was clear, two Falcons and a Pelican landed.

“We'll hold this location, you get on that Falcon and escort those transports.” An ODST ordered. Ruby nodded and climbed into the empty gunner seat on a Falcon.

“City's been under siege for the past five days...thought we had it in hand, then those Corvettes showed up.” A woman said over the radio. The Falcon flew along, with Ruby taking out Covenant. The pelicans broke off and escaped. She came across a convoy of Warthogs, and took out a Wraith.

“Listen ya'll, I got six-hundred souls on board and the Corvettes are poundin' us. I need to take off!” A starship pilot yelled over the radio. The ship lifted off the ground and began to fly, but suddenly, it was hit by the Corvette and began to sink into the ocean.

“Mayday, mayday! We've been hit!” The pilot yelled as the ship fell.

“Six-Echo-Two, can you maintain altitude?” A man asked.

“Negative! We're going down!” The pilot screamed as the ship sunk and the comms cut off. The Falcon landed near a beach, and Ruby ripped off her helmet and jumped out. She opened fire on the Covenant, ripping through them. Her eyes began to glow brightly, and she began to levitate. With an ear-shattering scream, both man and alien were sucked into a freezing whirlwind. The sheer force of the blizzard she conjured was enough to freeze over the ocean and everyone around. When that was done, she lowered back onto the ground and passed out. Before she did, she could see the marines that survived activating the AA batteries and missiles. The ships flew off into the distance, and she fell into unconsciousness.

A few hours later, she awoke groggily to the sound of boots crunching on the fresh snow.

“Check the whole area! Get her out of there!” She heard a familiar voice say. A ODST wiped the snow off her visor and she was pulled up by Kat, who had arrived not long after she passed out.

“Don't worry...we got you.” Kat said as she lifted her onto a stretcher and into a Pelican.

_'I-I did it...I saved the city.'_ Ruby thought before she fell back asleep.

 

**Hey-O! Zach here.  
That's another chapter done. I thought the death of hundreds of innocents would be enough to activate her powers (Watch Volume 3-Chapter 12 to get it.)**

**Anyway, it's Spring Break! Which means more chapters...maybe.**

**I finished Fullmetal Alchemist (2003). Great show. Much better than Brotherhood.**

**By the way, I'm looking for Editors to work on the “Wormhole” series of stories. If you're interested, send me a PM.**

**Well, Peace out.**

**-Zwill711**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't actually need an editor, that's just left over.


	9. First Glassing

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Nine-First Glassing**

 

Ruby woke up groggily, and pushed herself up. She noticed she was in a Pelican, but she didn't know where. Kat noticed this and rushed over to her.

“You're awake! How do you feel?” Kat asked as she leaned on her stretcher.

“I kinda hurt all over.” Ruby answered as sat up.

“You should. Do you have any idea what you did?” Kat said.

“No. Hey, where are we?” Ruby replied.

“New Alexandria. You got all the citizens out, and now we just have some unfinished business. Carter will inform you of your mission when we land.” Kat explained. “If you feel up to it.”

“It's fine. I've survived worse than this.” Ruby said as she climbed off the Stretcher and looked out.

“Alright. We're nearing the drop zone now. Good luck.” Kat said as the Pelican lowered down above a building. Ruby strapped a DMR to her back and stepped out. Carter was on the helipad waiting for her.

“Your report will have to wait, Lieutenant.” Carter said as they walked. “The Covenant are jamming all comms to Command. Kat needs your help running a counter op. It's good to have you back.”

“Sorry I came alone.” Ruby said sadly.

“Make him proud.” Carter said as they went seperate ways.

Ruby climbed into a Falcon and powered it up.

“Here's the situation. Covenant have deployed multiple long range jammers across the city. We can't hear Holland, and he can't hear us. The Covenant have those things locked down tight. When I confirm targets, I need you to hit them. Hard.” Kat said as Ruby lifted the Falcon off the ground.

“Your first target is a hospital that troopers failed to take care of. Get over there.” Kat ordered.

Ruby acknowledged and swung her Falcon over to the Hospital, landing in the plaza. She climbed out and walked through the doors, being greeted by Grunts. She charged forward and did a roundhouse kick to knock them down, then executed them with her rifle. She rushed down the stairs and switched to her assault rifle. Two more Grunts. She finished them both off and kept moving. Ruby found a weapon crate and switched her assault rifle for a shotgun, also picking up a drop shield.

She sped forward, using her shotgun to run and gun. She got to a platform and vaulted to the ground floor. There were enemies readily waiting on the floor, so she dove into a crouch and sniped them with her DMR. She went down the hall, and took cover behind a railing. Brutes were firing left and right at her, and she couldn't get a shot. Growing agitated, she ducked into a sprinting position, and activated her Semblance. **(AN: I died so many freaking times on this one part.)**

She blasted down the hall and up the stairs, taking breaks to get shots in. When she got to the other end of the hallway, she dodged the brutes and needler rounds, successfully making it to the Jammer. She punched the control panel, overloading the jammer. Ruby saw a jetpack in a crate and grabbed it.

_'Well, there's my escape strategy.'_ Ruby thought as she quickly slipped it on.

“Noble Two to Noble Six. I'm showing the hospital jammer offline. Nice work. Soon as you can, I need you back in your falcon.” Kat said over the radio. Ruby nodded and primed her Jetpack. She launched off, smacking into the walls along the way. A group of Elite Rangers with their own jump packs entered the building, and tried to stop her. In retaliation, Ruby shot their jetpacks and sent them flying through the roof. She flew back to the main room, and fought past the Covenant forces. One shot a needler round that barely missed her and she jumped up to a platform, being boosted by a concussion rifle blast. After fighting some Jackals and Grunts, she walked back out and climbed in her Falcon and lifted off. 

“Noble Six, we've got an evac op being harassed by Covenant shade turrets. Take them out.” Kat ordered. Ruby turned her chopper around and the marker appeared on her helmet HUD. As she arrived, A covenant Corvette could be seen in the distance. A few seconds later, it glassed a quarter of the city.

Ruby almost went over to help, but realized that the city was evacuated and she couldn't fight a Corvette. Instead, she carried on to her destination, and rained hell upon the Covenant turrets. The turrets exploded, and she finished off the ground forces.

“Evac clear. Well done, Spartan.” Kat said.

“This is Delta-One-Niner! We're pinned down by Covenant and need immediate assistance! We're at the Sinovet cen-” A marine yelled before he was cut off.

“Delta-One-Niner, come in! Delta-One-Niner, do you read?” Kat asked. “Damn it! Six, get over to the Sinovet Center and take out that jammer.”

She sped the Falcon over, and landed safely on the Helipad. She charged up the stairs and opened fire with her DMR on the alien forces. With that done, she used her Jetpack to climb to the next platform. She beat a skirmisher to death  and grabbed his Focus Rifle, almost instantly using it to blast a Brute Chieftain. She ran up a flight of stairs and dove into an elevator. She went all the way to the top, and exited cautiously. She walked up to a weapon crate and shrugged off her fairly damaged jetpack. She walked to the northern end of the room and snuck down a flight of stairs. She entered a large room, illuminated by the glow of the jammer.

“You're close to the jammer...destroy it.” Kat ordered. Ruby pushed the button to overload the jammer and began to head out. As she ran, a flock of strange, bug-like creatures flew in.

“It's a trap! Get the hell out of there!” Kat yelled. Ruby wasted no time and activated her semblance, dodging the alien creatures at the same time.

_'Oh god...Why'd it have to be bugs? I hate bugs.'_ Ruby thought as she ran. She dove in the elevator, and took potshots at any creature that tried to enter. She smashed her fist into the down botton and rode to the bottom floor. She ran as fast as she could out the gate, and vaulted a fence to cross over a gap.

“Command, this is Gunnery Sergeant Buck with the ODSTs. Come in.” Buck said over comms.

“We read you, Gunnery Sergeant. What's your status?” Kat asked.

“The roof collapsed on a building my guys were in. I gotta get over there!” Buck said.

“Solid copy, Noble Six will escort your Falcon.” Kat said as Ruby powered up her own Falcon.

She met up with Buck and another Corvette showed up to glass the city. Ruby outmaneuvered a squad of Banshees and Buck took off. She followed him, her gunners taking down Banshees as they went. After a short flight, they made it to the building, with Buck jumping out. His Falcon took off, and Ruby went the other way.

“Hey, we need backup! We're at the Vibrant Tower, and we got Hunters between us and the jammer.” A group of Marines yelled over comms.

“Copy that. Six, go help them out.” Kat said. Ruby swung her Falcon over, seeing that the “Vibrant Tower” was Club Errera. She hovered to let her gunners shoot, and looked at the red triggers on her controls.

_'Huh. Wonder what this thing does?'_ Ruby thought as she pulled the triggers. Suddenly, the large cannon on the front cut loose and bullets sprayed the deck. The enemies fell before her like dominoes and she landed on the helipad. Ruby climbed out and entered the club. She jumped onto the dance floor and pulled out her Focus Rifle. She shot a hunter in the back, staggering it. She gave it a good punch and killed it. The other fired his cannon, and shattered Ruby's shields. Ruby rolled out of the way and used her semblance to get behind it. She grabbed it by the head and stuffed a grenade in it's weak point.

A third Hunter charged her and she fired her Focus Rifle. The Hunter blocked the blast with his shield and readied his cannon. Ruby was flung aside by the blast but got back up. She once again used her semblance to get behind him, and ripped out the worms that made up his body in fistfuls. After only a small amount of that abuse, the hunter fell. Ruby looked up at the Jammer and walked up the stairs to it.

She overloaded the Jammer and headed back to her falcon. She switched out her DMR for a rocket launcher on the floor, and she was on her way. She powered up the Falcon and lifted off.  
“New orders. All personnel are to be evacuated from ONI HQ.” Carter said over the radio.

“Roger that. Six, head over to ONI and get those people out.” Kat ordered.

Ruby flew over to Olympic Tower, and saw Phantoms dropping Shade Turrets. She flew over to one and destroyed it. She flew around the tower, performing this routine until all the Pelicans left.  When that was done, she annihilated the remaining turrets.

“You are one steely eyed Spartan, Six. I'm extending the landing pad...come home lieutenant.” Kat said as Ruby landed at ONI. Ruby took an elevator down and rejoined her teammates. Kat was fixing a transmitter, Emile was leaning against a desk, and Jun was watching the skies.

“Look at this place. Used to be the crown jewel...not anymore.” Jun commented. “Hey. You made it.”

“It's a regular family reunion.” Emile said sarcastically. Ruby pulled out Jorge's dog tags to hand to Emile.

“Keep 'em. He gave 'em to you...I'll honor him my own way.” Emile said.

“Jorge always said he would never leave Reach.” Jun said.

“The big man was sentimental.” Emile said with a chuckle.

“He gave his life thinking he just saved the planet. We should all be so lucky.” Carter said from the corner.

“Sir, that true about Gauntlet, Red and Echo teams assigned to civilian evac ops?” Jun asked.

“Those are senior-level communiques...” Carter said angrily.

“I hear what I hear. Point is, why put Spartans on defensive deployments?” Kat said.

“I need that link to SATCOM, Kat.” Carter growled.

“Chasing it, but this console's got more shrapnel in it than transceivers.” Kat told him. “You didn't answer my question.”

“You wanna know if we're losing?” Carter asked in reply.

“I know we're losing…I want to know if we've lost.” Kat replied. “Colonel Holland! Hailing us-What's he doing on an open channel?”

“Let's hear it.” Carter said as he turned to face her.

“Sierra-two-five-nine, if you are receiving, I am authorizing override of radio security protocols to link with this channel.” Holland said.

“How long for a secure link?” Carter asked.

“I can't guarantee secure anymore.” Kat said.

“Could the Covenant trace it to us?” Carter asked.

“I could.” Kat boasted.

“Noble Leader, this is a priority one hail. If you are receiving, acknowledge immediately.” Holland said as Kat handed a radio to Carter.  
“We got movement. Multiple Covenant vehicles vacating the area, and they're moving fast.” Jun warned.

“How often you see Covvies retreat for no reason?” Emile noted.

“Radiation flare! Big. Forty million roentgens.” Kat said.

“Just lost Holland, what's going on?” Carter asked.

“Atomic excitement scrambled the signal. Ninety million now!” Kat replied.

“Source?” Carter asked.

“Airborne. Close.” Kat deadpanned.

“How close?” Carter asked as a large laser suddenly pierced the heavens.

“That close!” Kat yelled as the team began to run. The team ran into the elevators and Ruby ended up with Kat.

“First glassing? Me too.” Kat said as she slipped her helmet on. “Don't worry, I'm on it. Our best option is a fallout bunker on sub-level two. We get orders from Holland, sir?”

“We're being redeployed to Sword Base.” Carter said.

“Sword?! Covenant own it now!” Jun exclaimed.

“Which is why they want us for a torch-and-burn op!” Carter replied. “Keep Doctor Halsey's excavation data from falling into enemy hands.”

The elevators stopped and the team ran out like lightning.

“If it hasn't already!” Kat yelled.

“Maybe, but according to Holland, the Covenant are still hunting for something.” Carter said.

“Where does he get off calling a demolition op Priority One-ah!” Kat began to ask, before getting shot in the leg with a needler round. She fell onto the pavement, and the team opened fire on the Skirmisher that shot her. The Phantom with the skirmisher retreated, and Ruby dragged Kat to the bunker.

_'You will survive...YOU WILL SURVIVE!'_ Ruby thought in a panic.

 

_August 25, 2552. 0300 Hours_

 

The team stepped out of the half destroyed bunker, with Emile carrying Kat. Jun lit a flare, and they looked at the ruins of the once great city. A Pelican swooped down and picked the team up. They all climbed in, and Emile set Kat down in a seat.

“Alright, NOBLE, there's only one thing left we can do...” Carter said.

“We're going back to Sword Base.”

 

 

**Whew! Thank god this is finally done. This took three hours to play the level, watch the replay, and write. Three more levels though, then Ruby gets to go back home. So tell me what you think so far, review, follow and favorite.**

**That's bout it.**

**Peace out.**

**-Zwill711**


	10. You Belong to ONI Now

**I am so, so sorry about procrastinating on this. I couldn’t find the energy, and was having some other issues, but I’m good now. So here it is, it’s finally back.**

_The Wormhole-Noble Red_

**Chapter Ten-You Belong to ONI Now.**

 

“Hey, do you know where Kat went after she got shot?” Ruby asked on the flight to SWORD Base.

“Yeah.” Carter told her. “She got healed up and was put on a ship off Reach. She’s in good hands now.”

“Oh...okay.” Ruby said as she prepared her gear.

“We’re getting close. Get ready to move.” Carter ordered. “Oh, and Six? You’re leading a small team in there.”

The pelican set down on a small hill, and Ruby climbed out. The plan was for her team to clear a path for them to properly set down. She rushed over a hill and jumped down, meeting with her team.

“We got a job to do, NOBLE. Six, you in position?” Carter asked over comms.

“Ready down here.” Ruby replied.

“Good. Execute.” Carter said. Ruby turned towards her team and motioned for them to follow.

“There’s AA cannons blocking our path. Take them out so the rest of us can land for the torch-and-burn.” Carter informed her.

Ruby snuck down the path quietly, and scoped out the area ahead. She jumped into the nearby water gracefully, making only a slight sound. She quickly moved into a flooded building and looked out, seeing enemy patrols and a tower.

She threw a grenade, taking out a Ghost. The enemy had their sights set on her, but she was a master sniper. She had her sights on them first. A turret fired hot plasma blasts at her, and she quickly took out the operator. She sprinted through the fire, and jumped up to the roof of a small hut where the turret was. She climbed in and powered it up, destroying the watch tower and raining hellfire on anyone in her way. After the area was clear, she hijacked an empty Ghost and headed up the road, running down a pair of grunts. She found a tank soon after, and hopped off her ghost. She looked over the vehicle and opened the canopy to power it up.

“Six, no.” Carter told her.

“Six, yes.” Ruby muttered to herself while she powered it up and figured out how to drive it. **(Fun fact: I actually took a break from writing here...so I could listen to Hamilton)**

She drove on with her team, annihilating anything in her warpath. She arrived at the AA guns, managing to blow the first one up with her tank.

“BOOM! You lookin for this?” Ruby yelled proudly.

#  _Meanwhile_

#  _Earth-199999, New York City_

“So I take the tank, fly it right up to the General’s palace, drop it at his feet, I’m like, Boom! You looking for this?” Colonel James Rhodes said to a group of partygoers. “Huh. That’s weird. Felt like someone else just used my thing.”

_Back to Reach_

She drove over and blew the second AA gun right in the core.  
“Nice job, Six.” Carter remarked. “Guns are down. See you inside the base.”

She drove the tank along the cliffside, being careful not to fall off the side. She opened the gate to the base, but had to exit her tank after discovering it wouldn’t fit in the door. She fought her way through the base to enter with her team. She picked up a heavy plasma cannon inside and lifted it with ease.

They entered a maintenance hallway that led out into a larger room. As soon as the aliens engaged, the redhead returned fire. They headed up the ramp and Ruby grabbed a shotgun out of a cabinet. Her team followed her upstairs to an abandoned and ruined office area. They walked through trodding over glass and other objects, entering a larger room. There was a covenant ambush, and Ruby used the best strategy she could-running in with a shotgun and praying.

They beat back the ambush, and found what they were looking for.

“Looks like they got themselves cornered.” Jun commented as he kicked a dead Marine.

“This ain’t the spot. Nothing’s here!” Emile yelled.

“I have to agree. There’s no load bearing columns either. If we’re supposed to blow this place, this isn’t the place to do it.” Jun agreed.

“DOT, what’s happening?” Carter asked the AI.

“We are exactly where-coordinates revised.” DOT replied.

“Revised?” Carter questioned.

“By an AI of unknown origin.” DOT explained. “Whose clearance is well above my own.”

“Well, it’s pointing us a klick and a half east and a thousand feet underground.” Jun retorted.

While they argued, a secret panel with a path opened in the wall.

“What is this, DOT?” Carter asked.

“Our revised route, commander.” DOT said.

They entered the tunnel and climbed into the elevator at the end. As the elevator started moving, a video call with Dr. Halsey opened on the glass.

“Apologies for the unusual security measures, commander, but the stakes demand it.” Halsey told Carter.

“You’re Halsey. Casualty reports have you listed as-” Carter began.

“Yes, well, news of my death has been greatly exaggerated.” Halsey interrupted. “I only wish the same could be said for the rest of NOBLE Team.”

Halsey continued on about how the data from Visegrad relay unlocked a latchkey discovery for her excavation and how their new job was transporting the data.

“I’ll need to confirm this with Colonel Holland.” Carter said.  
“Colonel Holland will be briefed.” Halsey answered quickly.

The elevator lowered into a large cavern, with a massive alien artifact. Halsey explained it, but Ruby was awestruck by it. The elevator set down, and NOBLE team set to work defending the cavern while she prepared the data. Ruby ran around and activated automated turrets to prepare for the onslaught. With that ready, she grabbed a grenade launcher and joined her team in defending the lab. After hearing of a Wraith in play, she sprinted across the battlefield, running and gunning the whole way. She found the wraith and gracefully dodged it’s blasts, hitting it with an EMP grenade. She jumped up onto the top, kicking the Elite in his mouth and pulling him out of his turret. She then blew up the wraith’s driver with his own gun. She took down a Banshee and knocked out a Phantom turret before running back.

However, when she got back, the Covenant responded with an all out frontal attack. One of them charged Ruby with an energy sword, stabbing her in the chest. That was a mistake on that Elite’s part, as Ruby proceeded to grab him by the throat. She put her magnum in his mouth, whilst bleeding from her wound and said “This is for New Alexandria, you [Insert swear word or insult of your choice]!” **(AN: Sorry, had to do that. I wanted to write that, but had to keep my T rating.)**

Soon after, Halsey finished with her data, and she opened the door. Ruby stumbled in and walked with her team to Halsey’s lab.

“What is this?” Emile asked.

“This...is an advanced AI. The custodian of the technology down here. And she has chosen you as her couriers.” Halsey said.

“Chosen?” Ruby asked.

“Yes. You are to take her to the UNSC shipbreaking yard in Azod. There, you will find a Halcyon-class cruiser waiting to get her off planet.” Halsey said.

“I understand.” Carter replied.

“Do you? Mankind is outmatched. When Reach falls - and it will fall - our annihilation is all but certain. Unless...we can glean from this artifact a defense against the Covenant. A game-changer. On the level of the conical bullet in nineteenth century, or faster-than-light travel in the twenty-third.” Halsey told them.

“And what if we can’t?” Carter wondered.

“An apt question, if there was somewhere else to place our hope.” Halsey said. “There is not.”

Halsey pulled out the device and put it in a tube. She walked over to Ruby.

“Take it, Lieutenant. She has made her choice.” Halsey told her.

Ruby gripped the sides of the tubes and prepared to take it.

“Do you have it?” Halsey asked.

“Y-yes.” Ruby answered.

“Say the words, please.” Halsey said.

“I have it.” Ruby responded.

The team walked up to the surface. Ruby had put Bio-Foam on her wound, and there were two pelicans waiting.

“NOBLE 3 will escort you to Castle Base.” Carter told Halsey.

“I require no escort!” She said.

“Jun, make sure _nothing_ falls into enemy hands.” Carter ordered.

“I’ll do what’s necessary, sir.” Jun said as they went their seperate ways.

Carter, Emile, and Ruby climbed into a Pelican. DOT laid in coordinates to the shipbreaking yards in Azod.

“UNSC Cruiser ‘Pillar of Autumn’ is awaiting your arrival.” DOT announced.

Ruby watched as the cave they were in collapsed in itself.

Ruby looked out and sighed to herself.

‘ _In just a few hours, this will all be over. For better-or for worse. All I know is…I must get back to Remnant.’_ Ruby thought.

**Whew! That’s one thing off my back. I know I said I’d do one big chapter, but I just don’t have the energy and I wanted to at least give you guys something, so this fic wouldn’t be dead. I hope you enjoyed it, please review to let me know what you thought. In other news, the Reach war is coming to a close. HOW EXCITING.**

  


**Either way, that’s my post chapter chat over.**

**Hail Hydra.**

~~**-Zwill711** ~~ **Grant Ward**

  


  


Internet cookie to anyone who gets that reference.


	11. Epilogue

**Dang. Been a month since my last update. So sorry about that. Here’s the “final” chapter to this series.**

 

**Epilogue-Where Time and Space are Irrelevant.**

 

The Pelican sped over the canyons, as a trio of banshees chased them.

“NOBLE Leader, seek immediate medical attention. NOBLE Leader, please respond.” DOT said.

A plasma bolt from a Banshee struck Ruby in the side, and Emile launched an EMP grenade at it, disabling it.

“NOBLE Leader, please respond. You are alarming me.” DOT asked. Ruby walked up to the front, and the windscreen had a blood splatter on the front.

“Not sure how long she’s gonna stay together! Skies are jammed up anyway, gotta get you off, Lieutenant.” Carter told her.

“Sir-” Ruby started.

“Don’t wanna hear it. Get the package to the Autumn.” Carter interrupted.

“Done.” She replied.

“Not yet, it’s not. Emile, go with her! It’s a ground game now.” Carter ordered.

“It’s been an honor, sir!” Emile said as he smacked his fist against his chest.

“Likewise.” Carter agreed. “I’ll do what I can do to draw their fire. And Six? That AI chose you. She made the right choice.”

He swung the ship around a corner and Ruby positioned herself to jump. Carter counted down and the two crossed their arms and dived off. They slid down a cliff and landed smoothly.

They sprinted into a clearing as Carter maneuvered the Pelican about. Ruby looked into the distance and saw the ship. She looked at Emile, and he nodded. Ruby quietly slid down the rock face and stopped near a road. She hopped over a rock and shot an Elite in the head with her Magnum. The elite fell to the ground, and she took out the patrolling grunts. She sprinted across the bridge, pushing a jackal off along the way. She and Emile found two Mongooses and grabbed them. Ruby sped off down the winding dirt road, and then found an intact truck.

‘ _It’s slower, but more protected. I’ll take it.’_ Ruby thought as she climbed inside and tried to start it.

“No. I’m driving.” Emile said as he pushed her aside.

“This is about the radar station, isn’t it?” Ruby asked.

“Yep. I don’t care if you know how to drive a Ghost or a tank, you’re not driving a big rig.” Emile told her bluntly.

They sped down the road, heading further into the canyon. They narrowly dodged a Scarab and Covenant drop pods, as Ruby fired out the window at enemies.

Emile almost flipped the truck turning a corner, and put his foot down hard. However, the leg of a Scarab blocked their path. The Scarab moved, exposing its back, and Ruby used her marksmanship to kill the enemies sitting in the rear bay. They made it to a tunnel, where they could see the Autumn once again. As hellfire rained from the skies, they carried on. They came upon a broken bridge, which they would have to jump.  **(AN: At this point, I forgot how big trucks were. So I died a few times.)** They climbed out, and Ruby looked down into the ravine and saw a pathway.

“Looks like we can climb around. This way.” Ruby said. She jumped down and ran along the path, and Emile followed. She entered a destroyed building, and found a shotgun. As she fought her way down the hill, she found another truck, and decided to use it to destroy the Wraith ahead of her. She climbed in and mashed the gas pedal down, bailing out at the last second as the wraith exploded. She ducked into a cave to escape the gunfire. She exited into a large, open area.

“NOBLE...we’ve got a...situation.” Carter said over Comms. Just then, a massive Scarab marched out in front of them.

“We can get past it, sir!” Emile said.

“No, you can’t.” Carter said grimly. “Not without help.”

“You don’t have the firepower.” Emile argued.

“I’ve got the mass.” He said as he passed over it. “You’re on your own, NOBLE. Carter out.”

He sped the pelican around and slammed directly into the front of the Scarab, destroying it entirely.

Ruby gave a salute, and then walked to the edge.

“Crevice to the east. Let’s go.” Emile said. Ruby nodded and they carried on. Ruby felt a small bit of helplessness. The only members left of NOBLE were Emile, Jun, and Kat. And Jun had gone off world, and Kat was out of action.

She entered a cave and looked up to see the bugs from New Alexandria. Ruby hated those things. She pulled out a grenade, and wrapped cloth from a dead soldiers outfit around it. She pulled out a lighter she saved from Club Errera and lit the cloth before tossing the grenade.  She tossed in the grenade and incinerated all of them.

“Clever thinking, Six.” Emile said.

“I have my moments.” Ruby replied.

They exited the cave and entered the main area of the shipbreaking yards.

“This is Captain Keyes of the UNSC Pillar of Autumn. We’ve begun our launch procedure. Proceed to Drydock Fourteen. I’ll be there personally to collect the package.” Keyes said over the radio.

Ruby cracked her knuckles, and activated her semblance to dash through the alien horde. She dove into a building and shot everyone with her shotgun, refusing to stop for anything. She got down a hallway, and met a group of marines in a control room.  
“Drydock’s over there. Through that structure! Hurry!” a Marine told her.  She nodded and rolled out through a window, landing on her feet. She hurried outside and was met by two Hunters. She dodged a fuel rod blast, hopped up on a shipping container, and onto the back of one. She grabbed it by the head, and turned it towards the other as it raised its cleaver. The attack cut through the hunter’s armor, exposing it. She kicked the Hunter to get it to fire the fuel rod gun, and the other hunter was hit by the blast, killing it. Ruby pulled out her knife and begun to stab the hunter in the neck.

“ **BLEEP** you, you alien **BEEP** sucker mother **BEEP** ing piece of **BLEEP**! I’m gonna kill you!” Ruby ranted as she cut. **(AN: Censored to keep it T. The T rating grants me one F-Bomb. Ain’t wasting it here.)**

She hopped off his back and kicked him over, continuing on with her mission.

“A bit over the top, wasn’t it?” Emile said as they walked.

“At this point, nothing is over the top.” Ruby told him.

She grabbed a sword off a dead elite, and used her semblance to boost herself to a higher level.

“Keyes to NOBLE Team. We’re running out of time here Spartans!” Keyes advised.

They headed outside, and Ruby started heading for the platform, while Emile headed for the MAC Cannon.

“You clear that landing pad. Deliver the package. I’ll man the big gun.” Emile said.

She picked up a sniper and started picking off enemies. Emile fired off the cannon in rapid succession.

“I’m gonna send you all straight to hell!” He yelled out.

They fought bravely and cleared the area. Emile informed Keyes that the landing area was clear.

“Six...time for you to leave. Get the package to the ship. And get off this planet.” Emile told her.

Keyes landed his Pelican, and Ruby walked up to it. Keyes climbed off and took the AI.

“Good to see you, Spartan. Halsey assured me I could count on you.” He told her.

“Not just me, sir.” Ruby said.

“They’ll be remembered.” Keyes assured her. He looked up to see a Covenant cruiser heading for his ship.

“Cruiser! Adjusting heading for the Autumn! Four, we need fire on that cruiser or we’re not getting out of here!” Keyes ordered. “Bridge, we have the package. Returning to the Autumn, over.”

The Autumn responded and they took off. An Elite attacked Emile and he fended him off, blowing his brains out with his shotgun. He climbed out, and another elite stabbed him from behind.

“I’m ready! How ‘bout you?!” He yelled as he pulled out the blade and stabbed him in the neck. Emile pulled him down and the elite finished him off.

“Lieutenant! Get aboard!” an ONI operative on the pelican yelled.

“Negative.” Ruby told him. “I have the gun. Good luck, sir.”

“Good luck to you, Spartan.” Keyes told her as they left.

Ruby sped up to the cannon platform, ignoring the enemies. She glanced quickly at Emile’s body, before climbing up into the cannon. She quickly learned the controls and took aim at the Phantoms flying about. She looked up at the cruiser and aimed for its weak point on the underside. She took a deep breath, and fired. The cruiser imploded upon hit and crashed into the ground.

“Good work, Spartan. All stations, brace for cast-off!” Keyes said.

Ruby stood up and watched as the engines of the ship roared to life. She was glad she had saved so many lives that day.

“Is-is this thing on? Six, can you hear me?” She heard Kat say over comms.

“Kat? You’re alive?” Ruby asked.

“Yes. Now I need you to listen very carefully. You have your speed. You can still get on board in time. Ruby, you’re fast enough to save your life.” Kat explained. “Just jump off the MAC Cannon, then use your speed to get onto the crane, and dive into the hangar bay.”

Ruby nodded, then clambered on top of the cannon. She took another deep breath, and sprinted down the length of the cannon. She jumped off and focused her semblance. Little did she know, doing so would break her previous limits. Her semblance activated, but she didn’t need the crane. She felt herself going faster than normal, and decided to push her semblance.

“Sir? We have something on radar.” A crewman on the Autumn said.

“What is it?” Keyes asked.

“It appears to be...NOBLE Six. Somehow Six is traveling at transonic speeds.” The crewman answered.

Ruby launched herself toward the hangar. She failed to slow down in time and slammed into the wall, leaving a dent. The hangar door closed and the Autumn launched away from the doomed planet. Ruby lifted herself up, seeing Kat walking towards her.

“Well...that was new.” Kat said. “Your armor...it’s smoldering.”

“Yeah, didn’t know I could go that fast. My armor does feel hot.” Ruby said.

“Likely the effect of your speed. Come with me. We got a front row seat to Reach’s last moments.” Kat said as she helped her up. Ruby noticed that Kat was walking with a robotic leg now. They walked down to the observation room on the Autumn and watched as Reach was glassed from all sides.

“So how’d you survive after New Alexandria?” Ruby wondered.

“I was taken here, treated, and given this robotic leg. They told me to stay here for safety.” Kat told her.

Ruby nodded. “Do you have a way to get me home yet?” She asked.

“Yes. Follow me.” Kat replied.

They walked down to the lab and Ruby saw an impressive looking suit of armor. It was red and black, similar to her color scheme. It had a TACPAD built into the left arm, and there was a harness with a large core over the chest. On the back, there were four  prongs connected to one tube with the wormhole cube’s core inside.

“This...is how you’ll get home. It’s a modified suit of EVA armor. That harness is designed to keep you alive, and the back is where the magic happens. You put your little cube inside the tube, and it generates a slipspace bubble around you, and when that bubble closes? It teleports you and anyone in the bubble through the wormhole.” Kat explained.

R uby looked at in awe and inspected every part.

“When can we try it?” Ruby asked.

Kat smiled.

“Let’s get you home.”

 

_Later_

_Near Halo Installation_

 

“All right, so I just push this button? And it activates?” Ruby asked as she stood in the hangar.

“Yeah. That’s all.” Kat said. “You may not have been from here, but you did a good job. Goodbye, kid.”  
“I’ll be back. One day. Maybe not tomorrow. Maybe not for years. But I’ll be back.” Ruby said as she activated the suit.

The suit activated and she was encased in a dome of energy. The dome collapsed and she disappeared.

‘ _Goodbye, Reach.’_ She thought as she entered the wormhole.

 

_Beacon Academy_

_Main Entrance_

There was always a certain status quo at Beacon. Sleep, train, repeat. So many could imagine the surprise when a long-missing student appears suddenly in the courtyard.

Ruby appeared from the wormhole in the courtyard, relieved to see Beacon again. She still had the suit on, but it didn’t feel like she was wearing the skintight undersuit. She unhooked the chestplate to notice that she had returned to her normal clothes. She looked around and also noticed Crescent Rose had been returned. Ruby noticed her teammates running out to her and sat up. Yang pulled her up and gripped her in an airtight hug.

“Ruby! You’ve been missing for months! Where were you?” Yang questioned.

“Stopping an alien invasion.” She said smugly.

“Why...were you stopping an alien invasion?” Yang asked.

“Because the covenant started it!” Ruby told her.

“The Covenant started what?” Yang asked, confused.

“The alien invasion!” Ruby told her.

“Okay, okay-you know what? I’ll ask you about it later. Right now, let’s get you out of that armor.” Yang said as she dragged her along.

‘ _Maybe this sort of thing is becoming the new normal..._ ’ Ruby thought as she walked.

 

_A few weeks later_

_Vytal Tournament 4v4 Rounds_

 

Ruby carefully watched her opponent as she hovered about the ice. Her finger hovered on the trigger. One shot and she’d be knocked off that hoverboard. Her skill had evolved to a higher grade after her trip to Reach. She learned to optimize her suit, wearing only what was necessary. She’d learned to control it to her advantage.

“Ruby!” Yang yelled to her.

“Yeah?” She replied.

“We need more firepower. Something heavy, preferably!” Yang told her.

“On it.” Ruby said.

Ruby looked down at her belt, which had various cubes attached. She settled on one marked ‘TF2’ and loaded it. She kneeled down and powered up her suit, and was gone in a flash. She ended up in a locker room with weapons all over. She walked past the various lockers, trying to decide.

‘ _Rocket launcher? Nah. Flamethrower? Doesn’t shoot far enough. Ooh, that looks nice and heavy.’_ Ruby thought, before pulling out the large minigun she saw. She hefted it and activated her suit once more, returning to the battle.

“Yang! Look!” Ruby yelled as she showed off the gun.

“Nice.” She said as she ran over and took it. She lifted it up with ease and began spraying bullets all over the battlefield, and before long, Team RWBY won that round.

 

_Meanwhile_

“Mission begins in 30 seconds!”

“Ya da da da! Heavy owns best thi-oh my god, who touched Sasha? WHO TOUCHED MY GUN?!”

 

_Back to Remnant_

“You know, despite the whole missing for months thing, my trip didn’t turn out too bad.” Ruby said as her team ate lunch.

“Agreed.” Blake said.

“Yeah. You can actually shoot now!” Weiss joked. “By the way, do you think we should take that gun back?”

“Nah.” Yang said. “I like this gun. It’s the best gun. She weighs one hundred fifty kilograms and fires two hundred Lien, custom-tooled cartridges at ten-”

“God, Yang, just stop! You sound like your sister.” Weiss told her, annoyed.

“Either way, at least we’re all together again.” Ruby noted. Everyone nodded in agreement.

 

**AAAANNNDDDD...CUT!**

 

**We’re finally here. The end of the road. It was a long trip, and I thank all of you for coming along on it. Every review, every favorite, every follow, encouraged me to keep going, even after all the bad things over the summer.**

**You guys are what made this story great. And for that, keep reading for a sort of after-credits scene for this story.**

 

**This has been amazing and fun to write. It’s great to finally wrap it up.**

 

**For the last time, peace out.**

**-Zwill711**


	12. Post-Credit Preview

**As promised, here’s the SUPAR SEKRIT AFTER CREDITS SCENE.**

 

 

“That Rose girl seems to have teleportation powers. Will it be a problem?” Mercury noted as he watched the replays from the tournament.

“Not at all. Our plans will continue as normal.” Cinder said.

“You sure? I mean, she pulled a gatling gun out of thin air.” Emerald said.

“I’m absolutely positive. We’ve got a secret weapon of our own after all.” Cinder said.

 

_Meanwhile_

_Beacon Dorms_

  
“Hey, Ruby.” Jaune said as he passed. “You look like you got beat up. What happened?”

“I was running an errand in New Mexico.” Ruby said.

“New Mexico?” Jaune asked.

“It’s-uh- it’s a little part of Vale down in the south. I got into a fight. There was this huge guy-”

_Earlier_ **(Trying the Flash-Sideways writing style created by LOST)**

“Never-NEVER-touch my gun!” Heavy yelled as he punched and Ruby ducked.

“Look, big guy, we’ll get you another one!” Ruby told him.

_Present_

“-And he had a friend with him. Sounded like he was from Atlas.”

_Back in time again_

“You go back to homeland now.” Heavy ordered.

“Jeez, fine.” Ruby said.

“DOKTOR!” Heavy yelled.

“Ja?” Medic replied.

“Heavy need painkillers! Heavy’s fist hurt from punching little woman.” Heavy told him.

Ruby rolled her eyes and teleported away.

_Present again._

“Huh. Okay.” Jaune said. “Be more careful next time.”

“Okay, well, see you later.” Ruby said as she entered her dorm. She closed the door behind her and opened the closet, where the “World Jumper MK II” hung. It was the same suit she’d been using but created a larger slipspace bubble and was adorned with a large red crosshair emblem on the front.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**THE WORMHOLE WILL RETURN**

**Author's Note:**

> And I'm done!  
> All of my works have now been reposted here.


End file.
